Stalking Wolf
by Aria6
Summary: Formerly part of a Coyote's Stories! Starrk is the most powerful vasto lorde in Hueco Mundo, but completely alone... until he manages to separate and isolate his power into three things. A girl, a gun and a sword. He's content with a simple life in the sands, but what happens when a shinigami comes calling and threatens his pack? Starrk/Halibel, Starrk/fraccion.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: This is sort of an AU version of Bleach where things went very differently for Starrk. Enjoy!

* * *

><p><em>Not so very long ago, a hollow came to Hueco Mundo.<em>

_He was powerful. Too powerful for an adjuchas, although that was the form he took. That quickly changed as his massively powerful reiatsu fed relentlessly, sucking in anything that dared to come close. Soon, huge mountains of bones built up and the adjuchas became a vasto lorde. He was too strong to be anything else._

_But his power did not give him any happiness. It was unsought and unwanted, something he desired to throw away. Yet, he could not. All he could do was endure, alone and gradually becoming emptier inside as the despair threatened to overwhelm him._

_And one day it did. The despair, the pain, the sheer utter, aching loneliness boiled over, filling him to overflowing. And he threw back his head and keened his grief even as he instinctively sought anything, anything at all that could free him from this trap._

_He did not mean to split himself. It just happened, as his mind broke, as his grasp on reality and his own sense of self became broken and tenuous. He came free of his moorings but did not cease to exist, entirely. Instead, he called out the souls inside himself and they took three forms. A little girl. A sword. And a gun. As those three things formed his power coalesced, coiling deeply into all four remaining forms. The vast majority of it went into the weapons, where it could remain hidden until called upon._

_When the change was done, two forms sat in the sands, surrounded by broken bones and stunned by what had just occurred. The long, sharp, shinigami style sword glinted with a lethal light while the gun reflected absolute blackness. And the little girl lifted her head, staring at the man across from her._

"_Who are you?" She asked with childish directness and he blinked._

"_I am Coyote Starrk." That had always been his name, for as long as he could remember. "Who are you?" He asked curiously and she thought about it for a moment._

"_I am… Lilynette Gingerbuck." She said and he repeated it, quietly, tasting the name. After a moment he decided he liked it. "What should we do?"_

"…_We will find a pack." He said, pushing himself to his feet and looking at his weapons. He picked them up, then, sensing that leaving them would be a truly foolish act. He had nowhere to put them, though. Frowning to himself, he opened a garganta to the Living World. He'd never been able to do that before. His spiritual pressure had been too strong, forcing him to remain in Hueco Mundo. But now he could travel and he would try to find some clothes, including a sheath and a holster._

_Surely he could find that, somewhere in the land of humans._

* * *

><p>Halibel was not expecting the attack.<p>

It came without any warning. One moment she was hunting with her fraccion, the next she was fighting for her life. The girls were also caught by surprise, reacting with confusion and fear as their powerful pack leader was driven across the sands, sparks being raised from her weapon-arm. Then whoever was attacking her disengaged, leaping back. She immediately went on the offensive but that proved to be a mistake, as a weapon came down on her arm, causing her intense pain and pinning her in place. What happened next was hard for her to follow – it was all happening so fast – but just moments later, she was pinned face down in the sand. A sharp weapon – a sword – was being held horizontally across her body. She heard all three of her girls crying out and the distinctive sound of a cero, but the body on top of her didn't stir.

"Order them to back down, or my other half will kill them." The voice that spoke in her ear was masculine and she shuddered, fear coiling in her guts. What did this male want with them? But whatever it was, it was probably better than death… she hoped, at least. Raising her voice, she called to her fraccion.

"Girls, stop!" She shouted, hearing mocking, girlish laughter. It sounded younger than any of her girls. Who was that? But the sounds of combat petered out as her fraccion registered her dangerous situation.

"Much better." That voice wasn't old, at least. She would have hated to have been overcome so unceremoniously by that goat, Barragan. Carefully turning her head, her eyes widened as she beheld the male behind her.

"Shinigami?!" As soon as she said it, she knew she was wrong. His reiatsu was hard to find but when she did, it felt like a heartbeat, thick and dark and filled with hollow power. His face, though, was bare of any bones. He looked like a young man, in the prime of his life, and he was… beautiful. The regal set to his face, the strength coupled with grace and sensitivity, were all fit to make shinigami females swoon. Halibel could remember her living world days and knew she would have found him attractive, back in that time. What really caught her attention, though, were his eyes. They were grey and at first, seemed plain and dull. But then she detected the glimmer of blue, the power that coiled deep within and flickered as he used it.

"No." He sounded amused by her mistake and shifted slightly. She realized then that he had some bones, as what felt like a jawbone scraped across her back. "I have defeated you. It is my right to have you." He said as if he was commenting on the weather and she ground her teeth together behind her mask. He was right, curse him. "However, I want something slightly different."

"What is that?" She grated out, fairly sure of what it would be. There was only one other thing a male this powerful could want from her and her girls.

"I want to be your pack leader." He stated and she felt a moment of helpless rage. Although at least he didn't style himself a King like that insufferable asshole on the so-called throne of Los Noches. Halibel wanted to deny him, but she knew better. Her life was in his hands.

"I will agree on certain conditions." She said after a moment, hoping he wouldn't badly hurt her for her effrontery. But he just waited, his expression patient as she continued. "You must treat us well. No starving my girls or treating them cruelly." He nodded slightly and she continued, feeling a bit bolder. "No lending them out to other males." That was what Barragan had wanted from them. He'd planned to use them as pretty little trinkets, gifts for his most loyal followers. Just the thought disgusted her. A flicker of surprise crossed that impassive face before lips tilted in a small, pleased smile.

"Oh, I assure you. I will keep you all for myself." He said in amusement and she gasped as he slowly rubbed against her. "I will give you a few assurances of my own. I will lead you well and protect you from harm. I will expect you to assuage my lusts, but there are four of you, so I doubt it will be an arduous chore." He said wryly and she blinked. She'd never heard a male refer to his own sexual attentions that way. Most were far too full of confidence about their prowess. Someone else, though, shared the same opinion.

"OI STARRK! A chore? Geez! Get some self-confidence!" That female voice she'd heard earlier complained. He just laughed, amused.

"Oh Lilinette. We are claiming this pack by force. Shall I pretend that they are happy about it?" He asked and there was an annoyed snort. "Are we agreed?" He said to her and Halibel nodded cautiously. He withdrew his sword, which was quite a relief. "Tell me, what is your name?"

"Tia Halibel." She said as she stood. Looking around, her gaze fell on the young girl. She was like Starrk, almost free of bones and was holding a weapon – was that a _gun?_ – on her fraccion. She lowered it as the tension in the air began to dissipate. "Who are you? Forgive me, _what_ are you?"

"I am Coyote Starrk. This is the other half of my soul, Lilynette Gingerbuck." He introduced the little girl and she blinked at that. "As for what we are, there is no word for it now. Once, we were the most powerful vasto lorde to ever live. We killed anyone who came close. Even you would likely have died… these would have no hope." He flicked a glance towards her fraccion and Halibel felt both fascinated and horrified. She knew exactly what he was talking about.

"The mountains of bones. _You_ were responsible for that?" She said and saw a flicker of sadness in his eyes as he nodded, his face impassive. "What changed?" Because they were not deadly now. She could hardly sense their power at all.

"In my grief and loneliness, I went insane." He said simply before glancing at Lilynette. "I split myself into Lilynette, my sword, my gun. When I did that I shattered my bones and became what I am. Most of my energy is in the weapons." He twitched the sword in his hand and she could see a blue haze dancing around the metal. "It seems to be easier to seal it away in this condition. So now, I can finally have a pack. I consider myself fortunate to have found females." He sounded pleased and there was a huff from his other self.

"I don't see why you need females when you've got me! I'm a girl Starrk!" She protested and he tilted his head back, gazing up at the moon.

"There is so much wrong about that statement that I won't even start. May I ask your names?" He inquired of her fraccion and they began introducing themselves. Halibel watched, feeling deeply uncertain. If this male decided to abuse them, there would be very little she could do to stop him. On the other hand, he would provide potent protection from Barragan. She was relatively certain he could squash the old skeleton like a bug.

If he proved easy to please, the tradeoff might be worth it.

* * *

><p>For Starrk, having a pack was a very pleasant experience.<p>

Some things were annoying, of course. Lilynette was energetic and argumentative. At first, he had to mediate between her and the fraccion, particularly Apacci. She was easily as fractious as his other half and they did not get along too well.

Gradually, though, everything came to a balance. Starrk was like the old lion, guarding his pride of lionesses. He needed no food but he sometimes shadowed the adjuchas as they hunted, just to be sure they were safe. He could have easily brought kills home to them, but Halibel said, and he agreed, that they did not want their hunting skills to atrophy.

He mated with all of them, although Halibel was his favorite. Her humanoid body just allowed them far more scope for love play than the animal-like adjuchas. She was also the most likely to take his seed, although that would require time and patience. Children were not common for hollows, not at all.

King Barragan sent out a group of powerful adjuchas in an attempt to bully Halibel and her fraccion. They were not strong enough to overcome her, but powerful enough to send a statement. Starrk disposed of them with an ease that inspired awe in his new pack. Barragan would just have to wonder what had happened to his followers.

Starrk slept a great deal, of course. He also pretended to be sleeping when he was actually thinking deep thoughts, contemplating the state of his world. That was not something he could have done before he'd separated out of most of his power. His own potent reiatsu had overwhelmed him, and the more impulsive side of his personality had made it hard to concentrate.

Now, though, Lilynette was her own person and most of his power was in his gun and sword. It was very easy for him to read the winds, see what was happening far and wide in the sands of Hueco Mundo. By and large, that was nothing. It was not a world of activity and interesting events. One day, though, that changed.

Starrk lay limp on the ground, just allowing the events in Los Noches to play out in his mind. He examined the entire thing, noting how Aizen asked Barragan to watch as he released his sword. That was… interesting. The power of it made his lips compress, even as he held to his meditation. Full hypnosis… that was not good, a power even he might have trouble dealing with. Of course, the rather elaborate release of it suggested that his wisest move would be to attack without mercy, preventing the release. But could he win?

Sighing, he pushed himself to his feet. He needed to speak to the others. These events were too momentous to keep to himself. Leaving the underground caverns, he smiled at what he saw.

Lilynette was riding Apacci and thoroughly enjoying herself. The fraccion was trying to get rid of her as Mila Rose laughed and Sung Sun quietly snickered. Halibel was just watching, which indicated to Starrk that Apacci had done something to deserve it. While Lilynette was technically part of him, they had long ago established that Halibel was higher in the pack than she was. His other half answered to her, although sometimes grudgingly.

"STARRK-SAMA! Please make her stop!" Apacci appealed as she spotted him. He smiled, amused, but called his other half to heel.

"Lilynette!" He summoned her quite firmly and she abandoned her perch with a pout. "Come, all of you. There is something to discuss." He ordered them before going back into the den. He sensed the surprise behind him before his pack followed.

He took a seat on the stone, waiting for them to settle themselves before he explained. He gave them a quick rendition of Barragan's downfall, which electrified them all. The adjuchas were just pleased at the news but Halibel saw further and she was deeply concerned, even moreso when he told them that Barragan had been left alive, swearing loyalty to the new King. He knew she saw what he did and Starrk smiled bitterly before spelling it out for the others.

"If this were sanctioned by the shinigami, they would have purified Barragan's soul." That was what shinigami existed for, after all. "This man is a rogue, moving for his own ends. Now that he has brought Barragan to his banner, who will be next?" He asked and there was sudden worry among the adjuchas. Then Apacci spoke up.

"You can take him! You can take anyone!" Lilynette agreed with her a moment later and Starrk couldn't help but chuckle. Those two were so similar, in many ways. However…

"I am not certain I can. His might is similar to my own." He admitted and they exchanged shocked glances. "It would require me to resume my old form and I am not sure I would win." The taste of that man's power… it was frightening. "There would be a good chance, if it were just the two of us. However, he has two companions. They are both stronger than Halibel." He said that regretfully but certainly. If Halibel faced them one on one, she would put up a good fight but ultimately, she would die. "They would overwhelm you and then, against all three of them… I would fail." That, he was certain of. He might be able to take their leader alone, but all three of them? No.

"Then what shall we do?" Halibel asked and he pondered the matter, reaching up to scratch his goatee. It was an interesting question and one he had been pondering, but…

"Please tell me if you see any flaws to my plans." Sometimes, they didn't want to speak up, too afraid of his power. He'd never done anything to justify that but it was natural to be wary of someone so strong. "I see two options, but I do not consider the first to be acceptable." He said slowly. "If we were to render you non-evolving, we could wander deep into the wastes, far from Los Noches." Of course, he didn't like that because – Halibel put it into words.

"No. We won't do that to the girls." She said firmly and he nodded as they shifted, uncomfortable. "I don't know if any of them can become vasto lorde but I know their power is still increasing."

"I agree." He said immediately. He didn't like the thought of crippling members of his pack. "But that means they must feed, which limits our options." That was just a fact. The barren wastes were not a place for hungry adjuchas. "My thought is that if we cannot resist, we should attempt to ride the wave." He said and the adjuchas were puzzled but Halibel understood. Of course, her base form was shark. Even if she had few memories of the Living World she would recall water. "Go along with things, but holding back our full power, keeping our true strength in reserve in case the shinigami betrays us." Which he thought was likely. After all, they were nothing but hollows.

"How could we do that?" Mila Rose asked and Starrk smiled before explaining.

"Me. My power is very well hidden, unless I choose to reveal it." He said and saw Lilynette stir unhappily. "Ah, Lilynette. How many times have I told you I do not need public acclaim?" She was of the opinion that he didn't display his power well enough. She had told him, in front of the others, that he should seize the throne and rule all of Hueco Mundo. Starrk had told her that would change nothing except painting a great big target on his back. "For these shinigami, Halibel will be the pack leader. I will be nothing but a useless hanger on, your little toy." He said and smiled as Apacci sniggered at the thought. "We can explain my appearance as a freak accident that froze me at a low power level. I doubt anyone will look too closely at me, particularly if Halibel says I am under her protection."

"If you do that, it will be very difficult for you to protect myself and the girls." Halibel said softly. Starrk smiled crookedly. He knew it went against the grain for her, admitting she needed protection. Yet, she did now. She had stood up to Barragan but these shinigami had bested him easily.

"I know. But the shinigami will not kill you of hand. He wants living followers, not dead hollows." He said with certainty. "A vasto lorde would be a great prize." Although that made Starrk wonder. The three shinigami were each stronger than Halibel and surely their enemies were equally powerful. If a low level vasto lorde was inferior to a normal shinigami taichou, what did they want the hollows for? He supposed he would see. "Now, we will begin another preparation." This was an insane idea and he wasn't sure it would work. But if it didn't, they would lose nothing. "I will teach you to speak another tongue."

"Another language?" Cyan said as the other adjuchas murmured and Halibel blinked. "Why?" She asked and he smiled.

"Our own private speech, so even if we are spied upon, it will be hard for them to understand." He explained. He wasn't willing to call it impossible – he'd picked the most obscure language he could, from his soul collection, but they might still be able to decipher it – but definitely difficult. "This is the tongue of a people from a place called Uruk…" Starrk began to instruct them in the ancient Sumerian language. Hopefully, that would be secure enough.

For the next several months, they hunted hard, enhancing the adjuchas' strength as much as they could. The language lessons went well. Ancient souls floated about Hueco Mundo, regularly changing hands, and all the adjuchas felt that the Sumerian tongue was vaguely familiar. That worried Starrk – it might be easier than he'd thought, for someone else to decipher their language – but it was still the best they had. Finally, the confrontation came.

It was staged. Starrk had a power that was ideal for spying – wolf stalks from the shadows – and he observed the very strange hollow coming for his 'mistress'. He also felt the shinigami following. So he knew every bit of it was false and quietly warned Halibel what was about to occur. He was confident in her ability to appear properly grateful for her 'rescue.'

It went exactly the way he'd expected. The hollow attacked Halibel and just before she could be killed, the shinigami stepped in and eliminated him. He apologized to her for the attack and offered her a place in his forces, clearly expecting her to be grateful. Halibel accepted and with that done, the stranger turned his attention to the adjuchas and the standouts amongst them.

"An arrancar?" He said, eyes travelling over Starrk's body. His clothing was no kind of uniform, just things he'd stolen from the Living World. Blue jeans, frayed and worn from his life in Hueco Mundo, and a long, open vest with no shirt. He had a belt with a holster for his gun and a sheath for his sword. "Yet, I did not create you." His gaze fell on Lilynette, who stuck out her tongue at him. Starrk rested a hand on her helmet, silently calling her to order. "Who are you?"

"Coyote Starrk. This is Lilynette Gingerbuck." He ran a hand through his hair and looked away as though he was embarrassed. "We had an accident and took these forms. It made us weaker." Which was true, just not in the way the shinigami thought.

"They are part of my fraccion." Halibel interrupted, pulling attention away from him, to his relief. "I value them, even if they have no real power." Lilynette looked away, scowling, as Starrk yawned behind his hand. He felt Aizen's power probing him and blinked sleepily, hiding his power as deeply as he could. It seemed to work and he felt the shinigami losing interest.

"Please come with me to Los Noches." He invited and then they were leaving their comfortable den. Starrk wasn't eager to begin this new phase of his life, but he really had no choice.

At this point in time, fighting Aizen was too dangerous. He would wait to see what the shinigami wanted, what his plans for them were. Perhaps he would go along with them or perhaps not

Time would tell.


	2. Chapter 2

For Coyote Starrk, joining Aizen had a very unexpected and wonderful upside.

That was the shinigamification of the fraccion. He'd enjoyed mating with them before, of course. It had brought back memories of his short time as an adjuchas, the time he'd run on all fours. Still, Halibel had been much better, with her breasts and long, flexible legs. Now they were all gorgeous and he deeply enjoyed all the things they could do. They liked it too, especially all the things he could with hands and tongue. Although…

"Stop… grinning like that… you male…!" Mila Rose panted as she rode his cock, taking the thick erection into herself. That only caused his grin to widen as her breasts bounced appealingly. He reached up to cup them, running his thumbs over those pert little nipples. He loved how she filled his large hands so perfectly.

"Oh, don't worry Mila. I'll take care of his smirk." Sung-Sun said and Starrk only had time to widen his eyes before hands caught his head and pinned him in place. Thighs went around his face as his mouth was guided to her moist sex. He immediately found her clit and began to suck, giving that sensitive nub of flesh his full attention. "Oh…!" The warm, musky smell of her arousal went straight to his instincts and Starrk soon plunged his tongue into her sex, even as he reveled in the tight, wet heat surrounding his member. He was being used by two women at the same time and life was very good indeed.

He matched Mila's pace, hearing her heavy moans and pants as Cyan ran a hand through his hair, stroking back the heavy chestnut strands. He pleasured her relentlessly, alternating attention between her clit and passage, and he could hear her breathing speeding, her arousal increasing. Mila was the one to cum first, her insides tightening around him in an unmistakeable way. Starrk arched up, drawing back from Sung-Sun's grasp as he shuddered with the power of his orgasm. As soon as the spasms eased, though, he went back to her sex. He would not let any of his females leave him unsatisfied.

It took a few minutes longer for him to bring Sung-Sun to her climax, but he did. She cried out in pleasure, gripping his hair as her hips rocked, fluid gushing out and staining his beard. Starrk licked his lips as she pulled away, gazing up at her with heavy lids. She smiled down at him with a wicked gleam in her eyes. He admired the beauty mark on her cheek, her beautiful body. Truly, he was blessed.

Then he heard a gasp and glanced over to see what was happening on the other side of the room. Halibel and Apacci were there, enjoying each other with the aid of a double sided dildo. Sex toys were new, something Gin had graciously exposed them to. Starrk knew that absolutely everyone in the fortress except maybe Ulquiorra was getting use out of them.

"MY TURN!" Oh no. The one fly in the ointment of his joy. Starrk grunted as a light weight landed on his chest and his eyes widened as he saw the person involved was completely naked. "Do me Starrk! Do me!"

"Never in a million years!" He snapped at his too enthusiastic other half, as she attempted to take Cyan's place. Mila Rose laughed as she left his body and he could vaguely hear Sung-Sun chuckling softly. He placed a hand on Lilynette's belly, holding her back. "You know, when Grimmjow told me to go fuck myself, it was an insult, not an instruction!"

"Don't care! I can feel everything you feel, Starrk!" She said with a grin and he groaned in frustration. For some reason, that was a one way link. But it meant Lilynette always knew when he was having sex. "Can you imagine what it would feel like if we were BOTH doing it? It would be AWESOME!" Then she was going down and he yelped as she grabbed his deflated shaft.

"LILYNETTE!" Things quickly turned rather obscene as he tried to prevent his molestation while not hurting or even touching a naked little girl too much. He could hear Halibel's throaty, sexy laugh and Apacci's giggles. Even deep in their own passion, he was amusing them. "THERE!" He finally managed to pin Lilynette on her stomach, his knee caught firmly in her hollow hole. "Now, enough of this!" She squirmed before finally stopping, glaring up at him.

"You know, I bet I could find one of the others to do me!" She threatened and he snorted. "Really Starrk! I could do it!"

"No you couldn't." He contradicted her flatly. "First off, hollows don't like pedophiles. Second, everyone knows Halibel would kill anyone who touched you." Of course, he'd get them first. But no one knew about that. "Now just stop it. Resign yourself to celibacy."

"OH SCREW YOU! And let me go!" He finally let her up and she stalked out of the room in a huff, to his great relief. That allowed him to settle down on the cushions again and just enjoy the show. Mila Rose and Sung-Sun were petting and enjoying each other a bit, as well. Lilynette's interruption couldn't keep them down for long.

It couldn't keep him down long either. Starrk watched with heavy eyes as Halibel undulated in a most fetching way, her gorgeous body doing sinful things with her cute partner. He saw as they both reached their peak, Apacci's face screwing up with pleasure as Halibel released a long, quavering moan. The sight was bringing his cock back to life and Starrk reached down to stroke himself, smiling at the sticky fluid still present on his member. It made his strokes nice and frictionless, as he watched the two of them, shuddering and basking in the pleasure of their orgasm. Then Halibel glanced up and her eyes fell on him, noting what he was doing. Her gorgeous green eyes met his and then she was moving, crawling towards him.

"You are such a hungry man." She breathed behind her mask of bone and Starrk could imagine her smile. He'd seen it, several times, when they mated in her released form. "Would you like some more?"

"Only if you do." He said with a smile and her eyes brightened as she sensed the sincerity of his response. Then her hand was on his body and he groaned, leaning back on his elbows as she stroked his firm flesh. "Ah yes…" That felt so good. Her fingers were ever so talented and the feeling behind it warmed his cold heart.

Then she was sliding down on his body and he pushed himself up so he could kiss her cheek, feeling that bone beneath his lips. It was quite warm but then, it was as alive as any other part of her. He smiled into her face before gripping her hips and making a soft, questioning sound. She immediately understood and nodded, moving with him as he changed their positions so she was beneath. He breathed in her scent as he took her with a slow, leisurely pace. They were both tired and wanted to take it slow, the rhythm and speed coming naturally to them.

"You know, I think I love you." That whisper in his ear surprised him and Starrk looked into grass green eyes, seeing a deep vulnerability there. He felt his hard heart soften at the sight and reached up to touch her bone covered cheek.

"I have been used so badly by love." He remembered his past as a human. And yet… "But I long to feel it again." That burning passion, the utter conviction that he lived entirely for someone else… he felt an echo of it, for the hollow in his arms. It would never be as strong as that first love, but he was honestly glad of that. Those feelings had led him horribly wrong but this… this was something he might be able to build a life on. "Yes. I think I love you." He whispered it back to her, not wanting the fraccion to hear. He did not like to play favorites but in truth, the only one who truly captured him was Halibel. It was not her beauty or her grace, although he did love those. No, it was her calm and incisive mind that called to him. But it was clean of the ambition and hunger of the first woman to take his heart. That made all the difference.

"Starrk…" Halibel moaned, her fingers digging into his shoulders as the speed of their coupling began to increase, the passion naturally building. Starrk's breathing speeded as the pleasure became more intense, her body holding him so well. "Oh Starrk…"

"Halibel." He breathed her name, seeing her shudder at the sound. He kissed her bone, letting his tongue play over her jawbone. "Halibel…!" He was getting close now. They had been doing this for quite some time… but he needed to hold back, make sure she reached her peak first. Vaguely, he wished he could see the rest of her face. But just the look in her eyes was enough. She was so beautiful in her passion…

He felt her sex flex and tremble as she found her moment, saw the way her eyes went wide. He came just a moment later, uttering a hoarse cry as he emptied himself into her core. He felt it as she regretfully denied his energies, refused to let them merge with her own, and smiled wryly at the sensation. It pained him, mildly, but he knew it was for the best. They could not afford a pregnancy now. She saw his smile, though, and misinterpreted it.

"I'm sorry." She said and he shook his head, running a hand down her side as he slowly pulled away.

"We discussed it and I agreed. It simply has to be." He said and she nodded, a shadowed look in her eyes. "Don't worry. Someday…" If they all survived, there would be a someday. Someday, when they could have a precious child together. Or perhaps, even two. Could there be even more than that? Starrk resolutely refused to let his imagination get out of control. If they were blessed with even one child he would be content.

"Yes. Someday…" Halibel murmured before curling up beside him. Starrk smiled and cushioned her head with his arm, watching as her eyelids drooped. Closing his eyes, he stretched out and allowed sleep to claim him.

This had been a wonderful day.

* * *

><p>Starrk yawned and scratched his beard as he shuffled through the hallways of Los Noches, every inch the drifting loser.<p>

That was his persona here and his uniform had been selected to emphasis that. 'Casual' was the polite word for his appearance. 'Unkempt' was more accurate and 'slovenly' was the unkind way to put it. 'Sloppy' might also come in there. He was wearing a shirt that could have been nice, if he hadn't allowed it to become exceedingly wrinkled. It was white, of course, and he wore it open, revealing his rather beautiful chest and sculpted abdomen. He'd ripped the sleeves off the shirt, exposing equally nice arms, turning the shirt into an impromptu vest. The shirt had a black collar, but it had been designed for someone with a much larger neck. Starrk had done that collar up, to keep the shirt from falling off his shoulders. That black collar sat askew on his throat, sometimes leaning one way, sometimes the other. His pants were a simple hakama. Because they were creased to begin with, wrinkles were harder to notice.

"Wolf stalks from the shadows." He murmured casually before stepping into a shadow. He was going to spy on Barragan and his fraccion. He was still working out how to penetrate Aizen's kidos and avoid the notice of the various shinigami. Barragan was very clever so he was a decent warm up for that level of espionage.

Today, though, Barragan wasn't much of a challenge. Starrk grimaced to himself as he cleaned out his ear with a pinky, carefully remaining in the shadows. What was happening in the Primera's wing was making him feel rather nauseous. It wasn't that he objected to gay sex, precisely. I he hadn't been lucky enough to find so many beautiful females, he might have accepted a male partner for convenience. Perhaps he would even have come to enjoy it. But seeing Barragan naked did not even remotely turn his crank. And the fraccion in question must have done something to piss the old hollow off, from the looks of things. Starrk was not a cruel man and quickly left with a feeling of disgust.

Sighing, he continued his spying efforts but it was all random and pointless. He finally dropped out of the shadows, in a spot he knew held no cameras. Then he shuffled along, uncertain of what else to do. Perhaps he should play a game with Lilynette? He'd managed to procure a deck of cards. Even if the girls were busy, they could play Go Fish. And if some of the fraccion were available they could play euchre or bug up…

"Hey, Coyote!" Ah. Perhaps he shouldn't have left the shadows so quickly. Starrk cast his eyes to the heavens for a moment and schooled himself to patience before turning to look at the owner of that voice. Grimmjow was grinning at him, clearly anticipating a bit of pleasurable bullying of the 'low powered' fraccion. "How's life as a kept man?" He taunted and Starrk smiled pleasantly.

"Very good. How's life in the prison block?" He asked and Grimmjow smirked before stalking towards him. Starrk remained calm as the other arrancar got into his personal space, practically close enough to kiss. Starrk imagined reaching out, gripping the Septimo's face and slowly, lovingly crushing the bones. He knew he could do it as easy as breathing. But the cold, icy heart of cruel calculation that he'd taken so long ago would not permit it. He would never betray himself over something so petty.

Grimmjow was whispering filthy things to him, but Starrk was hardly paying attention. There was a problem and it was named Lilynette. Sensing his anger, she had come to see what the problem was and she was stalking Grimmjow, her eyes narrowed with concentration. He tried to mentally order her off but she held something up and his eyes widened slightly as he recognized it. But what did she intend to…?

Grimmjow roared in rage and pain as Lilynette broke a water balloon over his head. But it wasn't filled with water. Starrk jerked back violently as a horrible stench filled the air. Grimmjow lashed out blindly, his cero hitting nothing but air as Starrk grabbed his other half and made a quick escape. Lilynette's mocking laughter filled the air and Starrk knew the whole thing was probably foolish – Grimmjow would be even more intent on abusing him now – but he honestly couldn't regret it. Taking the Septimo's crap was, without a doubt, the most trying part of his guise.

"Hey Starrk! That was fun! Does it make you feel better?" She asked as she clung to his back, riding him like a horse. He chuckled, amused.

"It does actually." He admitted. That childish bit of revenge had defused his bloody musings. Still… he switched to their private tongue. _~When this is over I am going to show him his place.~_ Not as a corpse, perhaps. But Grimmjow would fear him forever when he was done. Lilynette shrugged.

_~That stupid fuck is going to get himself killed before you can.~_ She said and Starrk nodded. She was probably right. He personally thought it would take a miracle for Grimmjow to survive. But then, miracles happened and very stupid people could also be quite lucky sometimes. _~Whatever. Can we play a game?~_

_~Certainly.~_ He could talk with everyone while they played. That would be pleasant.

When he got back to Halibel's wing, the fraccion were present and not really doing much. Sung-Sun was reading a book while Mila Rose and Apacci were getting on each other's nerves. Starrk interrupted them, as much for his own sanity as anything.

"Where is our mistress?" He asked and the two of them left off their taunting to answer.

"She's having a talk with Nelliel-sama." Mila Rose said and Starrk nodded. That explained why the fraccion had been left behind. Halibel was trying to cautiously forge alliances and the Segunda was a good choice for that. His mistress was the Tercera and roughly the same power level as Nelliel. Starrk made a mental note to ask Halibel about that. Nnoitra seemed to have an irrational hatred of Nelliel. He knew the surprisingly gentle Segunda would never want him to die, but Starrk had no qualms about a bit of murder. Perhaps he would ease the current Sexta into a quiet grave.

"Well, that's good. Would any of you like to play cards?" He asked and Mila and Apacci readily consented. Sung-Sun wasn't interested but that was fine. Four was a good number. They began playing euchre, with Apacci for his partner and Lilynette teamed up with Mila Rose. They managed to get a full game in, a very even one that he and his partner lost by just one point, before Halibel returned.

"Ah, Starrk, you're here." She said with a touch of relief before switching languages. _~Have you learned anything?~_

_~Yes. Barragan is terrible in bed.~_ He replied instantly and surprised everyone into laughter. Starrk smiled at the reaction before shaking his head. _~Nothing useful. I still haven't managed to penetrate Aizen's wards.~_ When he did that, things would get very interesting.

_~Grimmjow's a dung head.~_ Lilynette said with a fiendish grin. _~He was pestering Starrk so I broke a balloon full of poop water over his head!~_

_~That was what was in it? Disgusting.~_ Starrk commented as the girls laughed again. Halibel just shook her head but he was sure she was smiling behind her mask.

_~Very appropriate though. He is quite a dung head.~_ Mila Rose commented and Starrk smiled. The Sumerian tongue lacked many of the insults they were used to – bastardy was not really a concept for them – but it still had plenty of leeway for curses.

_~Indeed. Starrk, Nelliel was quite receptive to my suggestions. I don't think she's happy with Aizen at the moment.~_ Halibel said and Starrk nodded. He could easily imagine why. Nel wasn't the kind of suspicious bastard he was, but she wasn't an outright fool either. She was being sent with Nnoitra to gather hollows, despite the fact that they simply could not get along. _~She asked Aizen to pair her with anyone else but he refused, telling her she needed to adapt to various personalities.~_

_~Is he dumb or does he think this is funny or something?~_ Apacci wondered and Starrk sighed, resting his chin in his hand.

_~He's not stupid. I think perhaps Nel's gentle nature is… irritating him.~_ He said after a moment. _~He wants her to compromise, take the first step down a darker path.~_ Starrk wasn't sure of that, of course. But he thought it was a good guess. Aizen didn't want to lose Nelliel – she was quite powerful – but he wanted her to put blood on her hands, accept that death was part of life. If she didn't do that she would not be as strong as she could be in the final battle.

_~She won't. She is not that kind of person.~_ Halibel sounded almost sad. Starrk nodded before smiling and sitting up.

_~Would you care to play while we talk?~_ He suggested and Halibel immediately consented. They started a game of bug up, with him keeping the score on a pad of paper. _~Nelliel may not be that kind of person, but I most definitely am.~_ Starrk said, taking a bit of pleasure in it. He'd wanted to be that kind of person, not so long ago, and he had succeeded. _~If it is likely she will be our ally, I believe we should take steps to preserve that and also cement her place with Aizen.~_

_~You intend to kill Nnoitra.~_ Halibel observed and Starrk nodded. _~How will that cement her place with Aizen?~_ The word they were using for 'cement' was actually something closer to mortar, something used long before the invention of true cement. Starrk shook away that idle musing before responding.

_~When he is dead, Sung-Sun and I will spread rumors that Nelliel was behind it.~_ Starrk smiled and he knew it was a cold, wicked thing. _~She will deny it to anyone who asks, of course. And there will be no evidence at all to connect her to the death. No one will believe her and Aizen will be quite impressed.~_ The girls liked it but Halibel was looking at him with an odd kind of sadness. What was she thinking? Starrk wanted to ask, but then Mila interrupted his thought.

_~Hey! Why you and Sung-Sun? Why can't we spread rumors too?~_ She demanded and Cyan responded, not looking up from her book.

_~Because the two of you have all the subtlety of a herd of rhinos.~_ Cards went flying as Apacci and Mila went after the other fraccion and Starrk sighed to himself, mentally bidding farewell to the card game. There was no way they'd figure out who had what, now. Halibel's shoulders shook with silent laughter as a squall broke out. Starrk just watched, amused. Lilynette laughed at them before going to his side, settling beside him. He put an arm around her, enjoying having his other half close.

Despite her odd flights of fancy, Lilynette was still the other half of his soul and he loved her very much.


	3. Chapter 3

Starrk slid through the shadows, intent on his dark deed.

Today, Nnoitra was going to die. He was shadowing the Sexta, who was snarling at a few lower powered numeros as he stalked through the halls of Los Noches. His weapon was slung over his shoulder. It was an impressive thing but Starrk was not in the least bit concerned. He did not need or want such a great weapon, not for something like this.

Starrk knew where all the cameras were. The cold, analytical part of his soul hadn't done much 'wet work', but once or twice it had and he knew about cameras and how to spot them. Aizen had put in surveillance all through Los Noches but he couldn't make the coverage complete. Most of the arrancar were too technically stupid to spot such things, but Starrk was a very young hollow. His awesome power did not come from age…

Reaching a spot that was free of cameras, Starrk had to make a snap decision. He did it instantly, stepping out of the shadow and speaking, catching the Sexta's attention.

"Nnoitra-sama. I have a message from Halibel-sama." He said with complete respect as the other man turned. He snarled at the sight of the 'weak' fraccion, but gave him a touch more respect than Grimmjow. Although it was ultimately respect for Halibel, not himself.

"What do you want, gigolo?" He asked and Starrk felt a tiny bit of confusion. His vocabulary was vast but it appeared he needed to add to it. Putting that aside, he smiled at the Sexta as he infused his sword, and only his sword, with a vast amount of energy. He needed to make this fast and clean and Nnoitra's hierro was very strong. It would take everything he could muster.

"You are – " Then he moved. His sword came out and he was behind Nnoitra before the other arrancar could register he was under attack. " – Unnecessary." The voice that left his mouth then was female, a sweet, achingly cold soprano. His blade sliced through the Sexta's hierro, beheading him in a neat, fluid move. The flare of power from his sword was too much – blue blazed, very briefly – but Starrk couldn't help that. Assassinating an Espada required a great deal of strength. Grimacing, he damped down his power before regarding the body. It was already dissipating. Slipping back into the shadows, he quickly made his escape.

They would allow some time for Nnoitra's absence to become noticeable. Then, he would put out the rumors.

* * *

><p>"You worry me sometimes."<p>

"Hm?" Starrk opened his eyes to gaze at his bed partner. Halibel was in her released form and her beautiful face was revealed to him. But she was gazing at him with a troubled expression and a deep sadness in her eyes. He wanted to wipe that look away, replace it with joy. "How so?" Was she afraid for him? If so, he knew her fears were warranted. But then she surprised him.

"I sometimes wonder how I can trust you." She admitted and he blinked. "You lie so well. You kill without a qualm. I know… you are our pack leader, and that is a tight bond. Yet…"

"Halibel." He gathered her in his arms, holding her close. He could feel a faint tremor in her body. "I understand. Really, I do." He murmured. The cold part of his soul had sometimes dealt with a similar reaction when she was attempting to be sincere. That was the problem with being an accomplished liar… eventually, the wise would never believe. Yet… "Let me tell you about myself." He would bare his soul to her, show her his greatest truth. Perhaps that would reassure the lovely woman he'd come to think of as his mate.

"Once, not very long ago, there was a young boy." He started, remembering it all as he spoke. "He came from a family of witches and warlocks, or so they claimed. They all made their livings in the mystic arts… fortune tellings, crystal ball readings, even curses and witchcraft. They claimed to trace their lineage to a great and perhaps mythical wizard." He said before smiling crookedly. "If it was true, this boy was a throwback to him, because his reiatsu was like a great ocean. All through his life, hollows came for him. But his mother was very strong and she kept them away. She also taught him her ways and before long, he had learned to manipulate his power." Halibel's eyes were a bit wide, at that. "In their town, there was a very prominent and powerful family. The man was known to be both cruel and evil. It was said – whispered, really – that he was involved in dark and unsavory things. That to anger him was to vanish and never, ever been seen or heard from again." Starrk took a deep breath before continuing. "He had a lovely daughter. She looked a bit like Sung-Sun, but her hair was gold as yours." He gently played with that golden hair, smiling a touch sadly. "She was much older than the boy yet began to pay him attention. Soon he was deeply in love with her. Together, they hatched a plan. He would help her escape the cruel, evil man who held her captive. Together, they would make a future for themselves far, far away."

"It didn't happen that way at all." Starrk said softly, remembering the pain of it. "He slipped into her house and instead of finding her, he found the corpse of her father, knifed dozens of times." He remembered the boy's shock as he stood over that body. "A second later the man's bodyguards burst into the room… in a way, he was lucky. They shot him out of hand." He could have been tortured to death. Starrk smiled at the next memory. "He was so confused! But he immediately began watching over the girl, hoping to keep her safe. Ah, he was such a fool and very soon, he realized it. You see, she had murdered her father and placed all the blame upon him." He explained and Halibel nodded, watching him with thoughtful eyes. "And before the body was even cool, she was taking control of his organization. He was a great crime lord, you see. And she was his faithful daughter."

"At first the boy was consumed with a great rage at his betrayal and ill use." Starrk said, remembering the futility of it. "But that emotion soon faded. He was not that kind of man, to hold onto such a thing. However, as a ghost he could see her for who she truly was, watch as she went about her business. And he became… fascinated."

"Obsessed." Halibel stated and he nodded. That was true.

"Yes, he was obsessed. He studied her, watched her at all times. He saw her reduce strong men to tears with merely a glance. He saw her dispose of those she deemed useless, without the slightest qualm. He watched her climb higher and higher, gain more and more power. And you know what fascinated him the most?" He asked before answering himself. "She never seemed happy. It didn't matter how high she climbed, how many corpses she left behind her. How many corrupt politicians answered her call, how many powerful men and women she kept on a string. How many lovers, male and female, she used and discarded. It was never enough, could never be enough. She hungered for more." He said and saw Halibel's eyes widen. "I'm sure you can imagine what happened when he finally became hollow."

"He devoured her. She is part of you." She breathed and he nodded with a crooked smile.

"Yes, and she is strong within me." He admitted. There was no point in denying it. "Her hunger is part of the reason I became what I am." That endless, aching void had partly fueled his advancement. Although only partly. "But always remember, Halibel. She's not the only thing I am." He said, looking into her face and trying to convey his utter sincerity. "I am also that boy. The child who wanted to believe there was a damsel in distress, locked away in a tower. The young man who wanted to believe he was descended from Merlin and that Excalibur was more than just a sword." He cupped her face, gently stroking the little bolt on her cheek. How he loved those marks. "The boy who, more than anything, wanted to be a hero. Even in death, he tried to save her."

"How… so?" She breathed, getting a bit distracted by something that was growing, mostly by accident. Starrk shifted, trying to hide his arousal a bit.

"He could still use his reiatsu as a ghost. Twice, he saved her life." He explained and she blinked at him. "It didn't make much sense, even to him. Perhaps he just didn't want his sacrifice to be in vain." It was hard to understand what had been going through his mind. Then Starrk groaned as a hand slid down, finding his manhood and caressing the growing hardness.

"He was a very silly boy." She murmured, looking at him through her gorgeous blonde lashes. "But I think she might have missed more than she knew…" She shoved him on his back then and Starrk went, smiling up at her.

"Oh, she sampled him. She thought he wasn't very good." Starrk said easily and smiled again as she laughed. "He WAS only sixteen and a virgin as well. I think she was a bit cruel." It was amusing, though, to remember both sides of that encounter. His side had been 'OH WOW' while hers had been more 'meh.' "Fortunately, I am not sixteen nor a virgin."

"Oh believe me, I've noticed." She said teasingly as he propped himself against the headboard, moving up a bit. She followed him, sliding her warm body across his aching erection, but not taking him inside just yet. He took the hint and kissed her deeply, exploring her body passionately. He slid one hand between her legs, finding her clit and giving that pleasure point its' just due of attention. As he did that, he lowered his face and claimed a warm, sweet nipple, sucking on the warm skin. Then he nipped, but lightly, meant to stimulate but not hurt. He deeply enjoyed Halibel's heady moan, the flex of her hips against his hand. Then she gripped his wrist, pulling that hand away and gripping his member. He gasped, releasing her nipple as she slid down on his cock. Putting his arms around her back, he concentrated on pleasing his woman, enjoying the heat and desire written large on her face.

He was not that boy anymore, nor was he that woman. He was Starrk, an entirely new being, and he would show Halibel that he loved her.

* * *

><p>"I meant to ask, but I've been forgetting. Does anyone know what a gigolo is?" Starrk asked as they played cards. Halibel shook her head as Mila shrugged. Apacci scratched her head for a moment before also shaking her head. Sung-Sun, though, thought for a moment before venturing an opinion.<p>

"I believe it is a man who sells his sexual services to women?" She said and Starrk blinked. "A… kept man? Although I've already wondered why a woman would bother." She said with a bit of distaste and he blinked again before chuckling. The chuckles soon built to a full belly laugh. "Hm? What is so funny?"

"Ah… Nnoitra. He called me that, once. I couldn't figure out what he meant." Starrk said when the laughter had passed and there were feminine giggles and laughter as everyone got the joke. "I'm a gigolo, it seems!"

"A useless drone male? Yes, that would be you." Apacci said with a fiendish grin and Starrk stuck his tongue out at her before pretending to pout. "Oh argh! Don't imitate Lilynette like that, it's creepy!"

"Speaking of that. Where is she?" He asked, mildly distracted. His other half was off somewhere and enjoying herself, from what he could sense. He wasn't sure where exactly she was at, though.

"Oh, that old fraccion of Nnoitra's – Tesra? – he's teaching her to bake cookies." Mila Rose said as she swiped up the cards to deal the next hand. Starrk noted the score and doodled a sad face in the margin. He was getting trounced. "He seems a bit bereft. I can't really understand it. Nnoitra was always such a jackass to him."

"I heard he was Nnoitra's fraccion long before they came to Los Noches." Apacci put in and Starrk frowned to himself, looking at his notepad. "Who knows what their history was?"

"…Hn." It vaguely hurt him, knowing that Nnoitra had at least one person who was mourning him. Closing his eyes, Starrk resolutely put any regret aside. Nelliel would have been worth far more tears and she was his priority, not the violent and misogynistic ex-Sexta. Opening his eyes, he saw Halibel looking at him. Meeting her eyes, he saw she'd spotted his moment of weakness. But there was no judgement there, just a quiet acknowledgement and he gave her a small smile.

Then he abruptly surged to his feet as he felt a blast of fear from Lilynette. He heard the fraccion's surprised cries, Halibel's presence behind him as he took off in the fastest sonido he had. She was the only one who could keep up with him when he moved like that and if anyone was paying attention he would be revealing too much, but Starrk couldn't care. Lilynette was very strong and usually kept his gun on her but the fear was deepening into terror…

He burst into the kitchen and his sword practically jumped into his hand as he took in the scene. Tesra was bleeding on the floor, unconscious and badly bruised. Lilynette was pinned face down on a table and sobbing as big hands tore at her panties. The gun was on the ground and from the state of the kitchen, it had been used extensively. But the arrancar on top of her was only scorched. He seemed to be some kind of centipede thing? And he was huge compared to the tiny girl, particularly his massive erection.

Starrk took the whole thing in and was moving before his rational mind had comprehended it. Animal instincts sent him at the stranger with a brutal rush. His sword was parried with one big arm and the blade cut deeply into the flesh but did not sever it. The cold, analytical part of his soul noted that he was dealing with someone much stronger than Nnoitra – that blow had easily been on par with the one that had killed him – but Starrk ignored caution in favor of bloody murder. His blade came free just as the other arrancar turned on him and a fist flew through the air with shocking speed. Yet, Starrk was every bit as fast. He caught that blow on his sword before leaping to avoid another punch. He prepared to draw his power from his weapons –

And then Halibel was there. Her blade weapon raised a great gash against the stranger's chest and she was shouting?

"I am the Tercero and that is my fraccion! Stand down, Numero!" Starrk blinked as he realized he was right on the cusp of disaster. He'd already released far too much power for a 'low level' fraccion. If he called on his sword and gun, took their power into himself, no one in Los Noches would be ignorant of him any longer.

"Fuck you, bitch!" The 'Numero'… he was Espada-level, even if he hadn't been placed yet – retorted. "She's nothing but a damned weakling!" He sneered at the sobbing Lilynette and Starrk warily circled past him to get to his other half. "And the other one's worse. He your fraccion too?" Halibel's eyes narrowed and Starrk could sense her ire. The fraccion all piled into the room then and he could hear their horrified gasps as they saw the state of Lilynette's clothes, the bruises on her pale skin. Starrk sheathed his sword and swept her into his arms, incredibly grateful that there was no blood. They had arrived in time, if just barely.

"He is not my fraccion, but he is under my protection." Halibel said evenly and Starrk winced to himself. Taking Tesra under their umbrella was, perhaps, a foolish thing to do. Yet the Numero had nearly gotten killed trying to defend Lilynette and he had a powerful enemy, now. Protecting him was the decent thing to do. "And she is just a cub. How dare you try to do that to a child?" She demanded and he grinned.

"Just makes the hole tighter." He said and Starrk stiffened in shock and outrage as Lilynette buried her face against his chest. There was a dead silence from the fraccion and Halibel's eyes went wide at the unbelievable, unspeakably vile crudity. "My name is Yammy Llargo and I'll be the top Espada soon. So remember it, bitch." He said with a sneer before stalking out of the room, resealing his power as he went. Starrk vaguely noted that his power dropped dramatically when he sealed, but he still seemed to be exceedingly confident. With good reason, sadly. If that level of power was within him, there was no way Starrk could slay him with a single blow.

"…What kind of disgusting monstrosity WAS that?" Cyan Sung-Sun said, her tone utterly appalled. Mila Rose and Apacci had actually been rendered speechless, just sharing a shocked glance.

"I don't know but Aizen will hear of it." Halibel's voice was tight and controlled as Starrk swallowed, his arms around Lilynette tightening. She was mumbling something into his chest but he couldn't hear. "Mila, Sung-Sun. Please get Tesra to the medics immediately." The two fraccion moved to obey as Halibel motioned Apacci to follow her. "Starrk, take her back to our wing."

"Yes – " He started but his other half interrupted.

"No, the cookies…" She said and Starrk blinked at her as she lifted her head from his chest. Her face was tear stained but she seemed rational enough. "They're in the oven Starrk. They – they should be done?" She almost asked and Starrk had to smile.

"I would have no idea." He said before letting go of her so he could open the oven. He pulled out a tray, looking at the cookies thoughtfully. "I think so." He vaguely recalled that the warm brown color was about right. "Here, take this." He handed the tray to Lilynette, who accepted it without a qualm. Their hierro was more than enough to completely protect them from hot metal. He quickly pulled out the other – there had been two in there – and smiled at his other half. "Let's take them with us to our wing. You can give some to Tesra when he's feeling better." Lilynette nodded, wiping her eyes a bit. Then Starrk noticed that she was still missing her tiny pants. They had been shredded in the encounter. "No, put it down for a moment…" He set down his tray and pulled off his shirt, letting her wear it. A few good knots and it covered everything. With that taken care of, they left for Halibel's wing and she left to corner Aizen. Starrk doubted the shinigami would care about such a thing, but he still might take action.

Pedophiles were as little respected among shinigami as they were among hollows.

* * *

><p>Unfortunately, his hopes, slight though they were, did not come to pass.<p>

Aizen was quite enamored of Yammy's strength and interested in the way it went down dramatically when he sealed. So he was given a unique rank among the Espada… Decimo when he sealed, Cero when he unsealed. Starrk vaguely thought that if he was interested in revealing his power, Aizen might have done that with him.

So the new Cero received very little punishment for his attempted rape. Just a stern talking to, basically informing Yammy that child rape would not be tolerated in the future. Adult rape? Starrk was wearily certain that that was perfectly fine. The fraccion had all been instructed to begin travelling in pairs, as much as possible. It really hadn't been necessary until now… Barragan was uninterested in them for his personal use… but Yammy had no fear of Halibel and might feel quite different. Starrk himself was being cautious. He had a feeling the idiot might be omnidirectional in his inclinations.

In a way, he was very fortunate that Yammy was a moron. Lilynette's gun had almost obliterated the kitchen and torn deep into the fortress. Everyone assumed Yammy had done it and Llargo himself had apparently not even noticed the colossal forces the 'powerless fraccion' had released. He also hadn't really noticed that Starrk had injured him and blocked a blow from his fist in resurrection, without even being released himself. Anyone smarter would have at least noticed there was something odd about that, but not Yammy.

There was something wrong with Lilynette, though. Starrk had honestly expected her to bounce back quickly. After all, he'd interrupted before any true damage could be done and Lilynette's personality was not one to dwell on things. So he was surprised to see that, a week later, she was still moping. She hardly left the wing and slept a great deal, which was odd for his energetic other half.

"Lilynette, what's wrong?" Starrk finally asked, kneeling beside her cushion. She turned away a bit, looking at the wall. He reached out to stroke light green hair. "You can tell me." He wasn't sure why she seemed so reluctant. They shared almost everything, although Lilynette often found his musings to be unspeakably boring.

"…I'm sorry I grabbed you." She said, her voice a broken whisper. "That time… I'm sorry I tried to make you do me. I won't do it again, I swear…" Starrk was shocked almost speechless as he realized she was guilty.

"Lilynette." He swept her into his arms, ignoring her surprised squeak. "What Yammy did to you and what you did to me are not the same thing at all." He said firmly, stroking that grass green hair as she sniffled, hiding her face in his chest. "I don't blame you for wanting to feel like a woman. Please, don't blame yourself." Really, he understood her frustrations with her child body. How could he not? "I'm sorry you're not an adult woman." He said softly, feeling a twinge of guilt. He'd been going insane and hadn't the least bit of control, but he still felt responsible for this.

"Not your fault Starrk." She lifted her head, her single pink eye meeting his grey. "I remember being part of you, y'know. I remember everything." She said and Starrk blinked, suddenly wondering.

"Do you remember who you were when you were alive?" He asked and she looked away before nodding.

"…Yeah. I was just a girl." She sniffed again, snuggling against him as he gently rubbed her back. "I could see ghosts though. And my family was… pretty bad. I liked to wander around. A hollow got me." She said and he nodded, sadly. "I don't think it was you though. I mean, it was a long time ago. I remember… a pile of bones… and then I wasn't there anymore?" She was one of the adjuchas he'd eaten, then. "But I stayed awake, kind of."

"I know. You were the part of me that was bored and frustrated." He gently teased and she scowled before lightly punching him. "The part of me that kept me from concentrating – ow!" Now she was pulling his hair.

"Oi! Now you're just making fun of me." She groused, which was true. Starrk smiled as he saw her mood was lightening. "You know, if pinky's still alive when this is over can you get him to make me an adult?"

"…Hm. Not a bad idea." Although he'd have to keep an incredibly close eye on Szayel. He had made the rolls of the Espada with Nnoitra's death and was noted for being both insane and untrustworthy. "We'll look into it. Although I'm not having sex with you." Starrk said firmly and Lilynette scowled at him. "Seriously, go fuck yourself should never be taken literally."

"Oi! Stuff it Starrk. Why don't we go spar with the girls? I want to do stuff." She suggested and Starrk smiled. That was a good idea… he'd taken to sparring heavily with the fraccion, learning to pull out the deadliest souls from his collection. It was becoming effortless at this point, and with that skill he was training the girls. The only troublesome part was staying unobserved, but Starrk wasn't too worried. What did it matter if he was skillful, if he had no power to back it up? That was what any watcher would think, at least.

They would be wrong, but they wouldn't find out until it was too late.


	4. Chapter 4

Starrk listened intently to the meeting between the shinigami.

Aizen's private meetings were quite a bit more informal than the things he held with the Espada. Starrk could see why… their overlord understood hollows fairly well. They were following primarily because he was the strongest. It was best to emphasis that, have a great throne and make sure the Espada remembered their place.

Tosen and Gin were quite different. Starrk wasn't sure why they were following Aizen, exactly – Tosen's discourses on 'justice' made his head hurt – but they didn't need theatrics. The three of them were seated at a low table, having tea and some rather lovely, iced biscuits.

"Maa, that Starrk… he's more than he seems, Sosuke." Gin said and Starrk winced to himself in the shadows.

"The cameras keep picking him up in places he should not be." Tosen said before taking a sip of his tea. "But he is noted as being quite stealthy. How will we be using him in the final battle?" He asked and Aizen considered it. "Shall we pit him against the fukutaichou?"

"He'll die." Gin said cheerfully and Starrk was at least glad that his power was still being underestimated. "Why don't we put him on Kira? I'd like to watch that fight. Or Kyoraku, but that'd be a short fight, eh Sosuke?"

"Mmm, it would be. No, that would be a poor use of his talents, meager though they might be. If he fancies himself a master of stealth, perhaps we should spend him on Soi Fon." Aizen said and Starrk sighed internally. They were talking about how best to get him killed. Lovely. "Barragan can take over after he falls…"

They three shinigami continued discussing the order of battle, which of the taichou would likely be present and which would be sucked into Hueco Mundo. Which Espada would fight which taichou, depending on the composition they faced. If he was there, they wanted to pit Halibel against someone named Hitsugaya Toshiro. Starrk listened intently as they considered how well her water would work against his ice. The various fraccion would be fighting the fukutaichou and it was finally decided that Starrk would fight Kira. Then things got a bit sticky.

"Gin, have you had any progress cracking that strange code Halibel and her fraccion speak?" Aizen asked and Starrk wasn't too surprised that they were trying. He really wasn't happy about Gin's smiling answer, though.

"Yeah, kinda. I took a recording to Szayel. Figured we might as well use him, hey? He says it's Sumerian of all the damned things!" Starrk was mildly amused by the look on Tosen's face. The dark shinigami seemed to believe they were nothing but clever animals. That they could be speaking such an ancient language, known only by the highest of modern scholars, was a shock to his sensibilities. "I can't speak it tho' an' I didn't want to ask Szayel to learn it. He might learn a bit too much, hey?" Gin shrugged before picking up his teacup. "These hollows… maybe that was Halibel's birth language. Who knows?"

"Hmm. Well, it's annoying but I don't think we should waste our time deciphering the babblings of hollows." Aizen said and received nods from his two closest followers. "Speaking of babblings… did you hear Nelliel's request to me the prior day?"

"Yeah, that was funny. She really thinks you'll make this place inta a new Soul Society!" Gin said and Starrk gritted his teeth, his hands slowly closing into fists. He didn't share Nel's dreams – in fact, he found them laughable – but he didn't go out of his way to mock them. Aizen laughed.

"Indeed, her plans…" He had to listen, just enduring, as they derided Nelliel's dreams. They also went a bit into Halibel's requests, which fortunately had been more restrained. Starrk planned to censor most of this when he related it to her and the fraccion, but he would definitely tell them how their 'leaders' held them in contempt. It was practically dripping from them. Starrk had never expected anything better of shinigami but it still angered him to hear. A leader should never speak so about his followers…

Finally, the meeting ended and Starrk was able to slip away, exiting through the concealing kido without disturbing it. That had taken so long to master, but he'd finally done it. Starrk had an idea that he might even be able to learn kido, if he had someone to teach him. Alas, he couldn't ask any of the shinigami. He found a good place to step out of the shadows –

"Starrky-chan!" And nearly jumped out of his skin at that hail. Turning with wide-eyes, he beheld a smiling Gin. "Fancy meeting you here. Funny how you always turn up places without leavin' any footprints in the dust, eh?"

"…There's no dust." Starrk said, then winced at how stupid he sounded. Of course Gin didn't mean it literally. The man's smile widened and Starrk felt a bit intimidated. He allowed the feeling to show. A powerless fraccion would be frightened, after all.

"No, there ain't." Gin advanced on him and Starrk leaned away as his personal space was invaded. He had an urge to put a hand over the shinigami's face and push him away, but it was easily mastered. Gin was genuinely creepy. "Ya know, you ain't as smart as you think." The snake breathed and Starrk just gave him a confused, helpless look. "Aizen didn't catch it this time, but you might not want to play that trick again."

"I can't imagine what you mean." Starrk said as his mind raced. The spying in the shadows. Had Gin caught him out somehow? A smirk twisted pale lips.

"Oh, I think you can." He breathed and Starrk shivered at the brush of air on his skin. "Don' get your mistress in trouble, Starrky-chan. An' don't make her cry. She'd miss you, I bet." Gin was definitely underestimating him. Starrk nodded, appearing completely cowed. "Later, Starrky-chan." A hand caressed his face before Gin lost interest and headed on his way. Starrk watched him go, cogs turning in his mind as he considered how great a threat Gin might be.

He was every bit as smart as Aizen and far less arrogant. That might be a bad combination.

* * *

><p><em>~…And that's about the size of it.~<em> Starrk finished his report, glancing around the room. Apacci was scowling, Mila Rose's lips were tight and it was impossible to see most of Sung-Sun's face, but she didn't seem to be happy. The same went double for Halibel.

_~It is not particularly surprising. Gin though… how much of a threat is he to us?~_ Halibel asked and Starrk scratched his goatee thoughtfully.

_~I'm not sure. I wonder how loyal to Aizen he really is.~_ He said slowly. Aizen seemed to trust him completely but Starrk wondered if that faith was misplaced. _~He seems like the kind to only truly be loyal to himself. And I wonder if he might know our tongue.~_ The fact that Gin knew what it was at all made him suspicious. Although it would be hard for him to learn. _~I have an idea how to test that…~_ Starrk explained his plan and there was a spate of girlish giggles from the fraccion. Although…

_~Why don't I get to do this?~_ Cyan asked, a bit put out. Starrk smiled as he explained.

_~Because you're much too refined to say such things in public – OW!~_ Mila had just got an arm around his throat and was shoving her fist into the top of his head.

_~Are you calling us unrefined?!~_ She demanded and Starrk wasn't sure what to say. 'Yes' didn't seem wise. And Apacci was getting in his face too.

_~Yeah! We are every bit as refined as she is!~_ She said and Sung-Sun, fortunately, chose that moment to speak.

_~The two of you are as refined as a pair of gorillas.~_ She said sweetly and they immediately released him to turn on her.

_~What did you say?!~_ Starrk gratefully retreated to Halibel's side. Her shoulders were shaking with silent laughter as she watched the fraccion squalling in their usual way. They were quite amusing, if you weren't their target at least. Internally, he tried to decide when they would put the plan into effect and decided they should give it some time. Gin might be on alert right now. It would be better to take him off guard. Starrk smiled to himself. If Gin did understand, his reaction might be interesting.

He couldn't wait to see.

* * *

><p><em>~What do you think, Apacci?~<em>

_~I think he's a bit of a stick. And his smile is creepy.~ _Apacci opined as they loitered in the hallway. Gin was nearby and Starrk was watching him closely. Had his smile just flickered?

_~I wonder if he might be… this language doesn't really have a word. You know, man who likes man.~_ Mila Rose said and Starrk grinned to himself. It was true, the Sumerian tongue didn't have a word dedicated to the concept. Gin's eyes had opened just a touch and his smile was definitely getting strained. For shinigami, he knew that was a grave insult. They were a bit close minded about such things.

_~Oh, no, he's not. Didn't he sleep with the thunder witch?~ _Apacci said, cleaning out her ear with a pinky. _~And Tosen said his best friend in Soul Society was a woman with tits bigger than yours.~_

_~Oh, I don't believe you! Tosen didn't say that. And how could they possibly be bigger than mine?!~_ Mila stuck out her chest and Starrk noted that they were going off topic a bit. That was fine though, he considered his suspicions confirmed. Gin's smile was amused, now. He wasn't hiding his comprehension too well. Apacci muttered something and Mila looked at her suspiciously. _~What did you say?~_

_~Nothing. Why don't we see how Starrk's doing? I could use a… damn it. This language sometimes. Oh wait, it does have the word. Blowjob! Yes.~_ Starrk choked a little from his place in the shadows. Were they going to tease him, now, while Gin was listening?!

_~Oh yes, the things he can do with his tongue…~_ Apparently, they were. Gin's eyes were a touch open again and his smile was very amused. More confirmation, if he'd needed it. Mila shivered a little and Starrk would have been more flattered if they didn't know he was there. _~His cock isn't half-bad, either.~_

_~Yeah, it's a good ride. And it's nice to just have variety.~_ Was Apacci's opinion and Starrk sighed to himself, glancing towards the heavens and asking for patience. _~Sometimes you want a cheesecake and sometimes you want a… damn it. You know, that cake made out of lady fingers with all the alcohol on it?~_

_~Tiramisu. You know, I could do with a cookie…~ _Their work finished, the fraccion left. Starrk followed them in the shadows and dropped out as soon as they were in a good spot. _~That did it?~_

_~Yes, your mission was a success.~ _He said before dropping into Japanese. "Now, you mentioned something about blowjobs…?" He wouldn't really object to that either. They both grinned at him.

"After we get our cookies. I hear Lilynette's experimenting with dates and walnuts." Mila Rose said firmly and Starrk laughed before nodding. He knew that was true, Lilynette was having fun with her new skills. He trailed after them as they headed for the kitchens. Perhaps, when they were done, there might be some oral sex in the offing.

It was a fairly common occurrence, after all.

* * *

><p>"Gin, can we talk?" Starrk asked and the shinigami turned to look at him, mildly surprised. "Somewhere private?" They were not being covered by a camera but it was still a rather open area. Not a great place for a private conversation. Gin looked at him thoughtfully for a moment before smiling.<p>

"Sure Starrky-chan!" Starrk smiled back before leading him to a storeroom. It had possessed a camera, before he'd 'accidentally' destroyed it playing hackey sack with Lilynette. "So what does Halibel want with me, hmm?"

"Well…" Starrk deliberately shifted languages. _~For starters, we know you understand us.~_ He said and Gin's smile didn't waver.

"Don't quite get that, Starrky-chan." He said easily and Starrk raised his eyebrows before giving him an unimpressed look.

_~Please, we both know better.~_ Then he dropped back into Japanese. "I'm sure you thought Mila and Sung-Sun were just amusing themselves by insulting your sexuality in front of you, but it was actually a test. I was watching." He explained. "The only question I have now is, can you speak it or do you just understand?" That was the thousand dollar question. _~It would be useful if you can speak it.~_

_~Well, maybe.~_ Gin replied with that foxy smile of his and Starrk smiled in appreciation. _~Wasn't easy to learn, let me tell you! But what d'you want to say? Just showin' off how smart you are?~_ He said and Starrk shook his head.

_~I prefer that no one knows how smart I am.~ _He said seriously. _~But sometimes, one must sacrifice to a good cause. Tell me, Gin. How loyal are you to Aizen, really?~_ That was the thousand dollar question. Gin's smile didn't flicker for a moment.

_~Why Starrky-chan, I'm every bit as loyal as you are!~_ He said cheerfully and Starrk snorted. Surely Gin could read his character well enough to know that he was loyal to only himself. Well, and those close to him. Aizen was not that, by any measure. _~Let me tell you a story. An' if you tell Aizen, I'll say you're lying.~_

_~Once, there was a boy. He was just a young kid, tryin' to survive in the Rukongai. It's a fucking filthy place, ya know. Really bad if ya need food an' all plus souls with high reiatsu do.~ _Gin said and Starrk nodded, images of a thousand slums flashing behind his eyes. He knew human filth and starvation. _~This boy, he was pretty good at scavenging food. Then one day, he found this girl. She was passed out on the ground, weak from no food. So he gave her a persimmon and helped her along. They were best friends.~_

_~Then one day, some guys attacked her. They didn't kill her but they stole something from her. Something precious that could never, ever be replaced.~ _There was no amusement in Gin's tone now. _~The boy knew he couldn't kill 'em. He followed them, saw them bring that thing to a shinigami, who took it with a smile. And that day, he decided he would kill that shinigami.~_

_~Mm.~ _Starrk wasn't quite buying the story. _~Surely the boy could have found allies among the shinigami. Surely he didn't have to go quite this far.~_ He probed and Gin's smile widened.

_~Oh but Starrky-chan, he wanted to go this far. I told you the Rukongai's a filthy place, now didn't I? D'you know how often those two almost starved to death?~ _Gin was still smiling but now it was a narrow, hateful thing to Starrk's eyes. _~You hollows can eat all those fuckers for all I care. I don't know if what comes next'll be any better but it can't be any worse.~_

_~I see.~_ That made perfect sense to him. Gin didn't care about anything but himself and the prize he'd set himself to reclaim. In fact, he hated his fellow taichou for their elitism and indifference. Starrk could understand perfectly. In fact, had he seen this place Gin was talking about? He had a feeling he had. After all, hollows undoubtedly existed there, living on the scraps. _~Well, since you've told me a story, let me tell you a story. And if you tell Aizen I'll deny it.~_ He said lightly, although he was running a greater risk than Gin. Aizen would take his word over Starrk's any day. Still, if he wanted to get anything useful out of Gin he needed to reveal a bit. _~Not so very long ago, there was a vasto lorde. He was powerful, so strong that other hollows couldn't even sense him. They wandered into his power and died, forming great mountains of bones. Not a single one could survive and for some time, the hollow was completely alone.~_

_~One day, this great hollow went insane.~_ Starrk said softly, remembering the pain of it. _~And in his insanity, he split. He shed his bones, becoming the first of a new hollow breed. He should have been the last. But then a shinigami came to Hueco Mundo and discovered the same thing he had found by accident. But instead of hiding and weakening power, he strengthened it.~_ Gin was still smiling and Starrk had a definite feeling he wasn't buying the story. He leaned a bit closer, along blue to flicker in his eyes. _~Although nothing he created could come close to the power he passed on by.~_ Starrk allowed just a touch, the merest taste of his power to waft through the air before he sealed it away. He had the pleasure of seeing Gin's eyes open, just a touch.

_~Now, this great hollow's highest ambition was to play cards, have sex and eventually, raise a child.~ _Starrk said lightly. _~He did not want to be King, for what is a King but a target? However, the shinigami disrupted his plans. He thought about going to kill the man, but he had followers… and with those followers, matters became chancy. So instead of risking death, he decided to follow, but hiding his power. Watching from the shadows, working towards the good of his own pack, and no one else.~ _That was just the truth. Starrk would prefer that Nelliel survive, but he would sacrifice her if necessary. _~Now, I wonder. What plan does that boy have? And could a great and powerful hollow be part of it?~_ He asked and Gin cocked his head to one side in an oddly birdlike gesture.

_~Maybe. I usually like workin' alone. But maybe. I'll think a bit and let you know, Starrky-chan.~_ Gin said before smiling brightly. _~If all that's true, I'm impressed! You take Grimmjow's bullshit like a champion!~_ He said and Starrk sighed.

_~Indeed. I'm looking forward to putting him in his place. And what I intend to do to Yammy…~ _He smiled slowly then, and knew it was his female soul's smile. That expression had made strong men tremble in terror.

_~Heh. That's a creepier smile than mine. I like that look on you, Starrky-chan. Well, catch you later.~ _Gin said before making his exit. Starrk watched him go, thoughtfully. He was relatively certain Gin wouldn't turn him in to Aizen, but would they coordinate their efforts? He wasn't sure.

He would just have to see.

* * *

><p>Starrk sighed, fluffing his pink skirt and adjusting the pink and white, tulle embellished straps that were holding it in place. The white bow right above his ass was the crowning humiliation.<p>

"Hehe, this is awesome!" Lilynette was wearing a matching outfit, but with the addition of a small tube top, to preserve her modesty. Starrk grimaced as he glanced down his front. His chest was fully on display. He was wearing underwear beneath his skirt, which was simply necessary. It was too short and he was not eager to display his junk to the world.

"I can't believe you made that bet with the fraccion. And why in hell was I included?" Starrk half-muttered, half-snarled as he got the tea service ready. The look on the two girls who fancied themselves Aizen's aides, when he'd taken over their tea duties for the day, had been priceless. He was sure they'd reported it to Aizen but he hadn't sent anyone to put a stop to it. Starrk had honestly been hoping he would.

"Because I wanted to see you in that!" She chirped and Starrk sometimes wished he could disown her. But it was hard to repudiate a part of yourself. "You look awesome – "

"Squeeze my ass and I swear to god, I will give you to Ulquiorra for the day." Starrk threatened and Lilynette made a face. She hated the bat, saying he was unutterably boring. Starrk was sure Ulquiorra disliked her just as much and would refuse to keep her for an hour, let alone a day. But Lilynette didn't know that. "Come on, let's go." He was eager to get this humiliation over with.

"What the FUCK?!" Grimmjow was the first to spot him and Starrk closed his eyes for a moment before favoring the Sexta with a tight smile. The entire table turned to look at him, eyes travelling over him as he began pouring the tea. "What the fuck happened here?!"

"Grimmjow, language." Aizen reproved the Espada mildly, a smile on his face. Halibel's shoulders were shaking with silent laughter. Of course, she'd known all about Lilynette's little bet. "I'm not certain why, but Starrk felt moved to serve us tea today."

"I, um… th-thank you…" Nel stuttered as he served her, her eyes travelling over him like they weren't sure where to land. From the blush on her cheeks, Starrk thought she liked what she was seeing. Barragan seemed stoic but the hand that snaked under his skirt and gave his ass a squeeze… his jump was a touch too obvious and Lilynette's laughter was worse. Giving his other half a glare, he continued his tea serving duties. Fortunately, he managed to avoid Grimmjow's grope. Szayel's gaze, though, was much creepier than Nelliel's.

"Seriously, though, what happened?" Grimmjow asked and Halibel provided the answer.

"Lilynette made a bet with the rest of the fraccion. She included Starrk in her terms, which is fair given that they are the same hollow." She explained as Lilynette set out the little trays of snacks she had helped prepare. Starrk had sampled them and they were really quite good. "They lost and this is the consequence."

"Oh, lost a bet Starrky-chan? You'll have to do this more often, it's so cute!" Gin said cheerfully and Starrk flipped him the bird. "Well that ain't cute at all." He said with a bit of a pout and Starrk just shook his head.

"Does anyone need anything else?" He asked and Yammy had a request.

"Yeah, gimme some sugar." He said with a leer and Starrk's eyes narrowed. He took a deep breath, feeling Lilynette going still behind him. She was still more than a bit afraid of Yammy. He took the sugar tongs and saw, to his annoyance, that Yammy's teacup was fairly far out on the table. True, the Decimo had long arms but he was sure this was meant to make him display his body. Leaning over the table, he wasn't really surprised when he felt a big hand on his rump. Cocking his elbow, he took a shot. "OW!" Yammy recoiled, clutching his face as Starrk dropped the sugar lump into his teacup before withdrawing.

"My apologies. My elbow slipped." He said very insincerely as Yammy growled at him. The Espada didn't quite dare take exception right in front of Aizen, though. With that done, he was finally allowed to make his escape and change back into… his… clothes… "Who the hell stole my uniform?" He said in a no-nonsense tone. He knew where he'd put it. It wasn't there now. Lilynette giggled and he shot her a sharp look. "Lilynette?!"

"Hey, don't look at me, I didn't do it!" She said defensively and he was sure she was telling the truth. Had it been Aizen's aides? He wouldn't put it past the dark haired one, he'd noticed her leering at him a bit. What was her name again, Loly? She was quite a poisonous little bitch… wait. Wait!

"Gin, I'm going to skin you alive." Suddenly, he just knew who had done it. There was a titter from the shadows and Starrk cast his eyes towards the heavens, begging for patience. "Ugh. Fine." Stalking off, he tried to ignore the way the skirt fell around his ass. And how the bow waggled with every movement. Lilynette followed behind him, giggling.

This had been a very long day.

* * *

><p>Author's note: If you want to see a picture of Starrk in that outfit, I found it on the internet. Yes, it's real! ^_^<p> 


	5. Chapter 5 - The Real One

Starrk tapped on the door, giving the person inside fair warning before he shoved it open and slouched inside.

"Hello." He said with a smile as he gazed over the human woman. Inoue Orihime, yes, that was her name. She was looking at him with wide-eyes and he could almost taste her fear. "Please, don't be afraid. I'm not here to harm you." He said easily, drifting through the room before walking behind the couch. He leaned against it, resting his arms on the top. "I'm told you have vast and amazing healing powers." He knew that largely because Grimmjow had, once again, bullied him. For a while after he'd lost his arm the ex-Espada had left him alone but now that he had it back he was up to his old tricks.

"Y-Yes. Um…. Who…?" She said hesitantly as Starrk idly glanced her over. She was wearing a uniform, this one in a very concealing style. He thought the skirts would make it difficult to run in, although Cyan wore something moderately similar and seemed to have no problem.

"Coyote Starrk, fraccion to Tia Halibel, Tercero Espada." He introduced himself and saw her swallow. "Ah, truly, you shouldn't be alarmed! I am a gentle soul." He said before vaulting over the sofa and settling into it, putting one foot over his knee as he stretched out in a casual pose. She just looked at him, one hand balled in her skirt. "Tell me. Do you have any offensive capabilities?" He asked idly and she hesitated before nodding. "Can you show it to me?" She shook her head and he tilted his head to one side.

"There is nothing here I can…" She offered and he glanced around the room. It was true, it had very little that would serve as a target.

"Well, you could always use me." Starrk said, half-serious. He was sure her power would not even scratch him, but that might be unwise to demonstrate. She winced at the thought. "Perhaps not. And there is nothing for you to heal. Vexing." Starrk rested his cheek against his hand, just looking at her thoughtfully for a moment. "You know, it surprises me that Aizen would dress you in that." He said, watching her reactions. "As if you are one of us." He probed. She looked very sad, glancing away.

"I am one of you, Starrk-san." She said softly and he considered her for a moment before suddenly sliding to his feet. She looked at him as he advanced on her, her grey eyes wide.

"You are no more one of us than I am an Espada." He corrected and she swallowed. He could scent her fear but this time, did not reassure her. Instead he backed her against a wall, resting an arm against the white surface as he invaded her space. "What hold does he have over you?" He murmured, seeing her flinch. Yes, that was it. "Is he threatening your family? A loved one?" That seemed likely to him. If this girl was a willing convert to Aizen's cause, he would eat his vest. "Is he – ah." He lifted his head in slight annoyance as a very familiar reiatsu swept through the room. He felt Orihime's fear increase and stepped away from her as Ulquiorra stared at him.

"Starrk. What are you doing here?" He asked, his voice monotone but with a deadly edge. Starrk stuck his hands in his pockets and slouched, glancing to the side with a faintly guilty air.

"Just checking on her. Halibel-sama was interested in a new female." He offered as Ulquiorra glided towards him. He could scent the aggression in the air and deliberately sloped his shoulders, attempting to make himself look smaller.

"Are you certain you are not trying to acquire another for your harem?" Ulquiorra's distaste for his lifestyle was rather blatant. Starrk deliberately widened his eyes before putting a hand behind his head, rubbing his scalp with a rueful smile.

"Oh heavens no! Admittedly, she's lovely, but I already have four beautiful women who would knock my head off if I dared stray." He said lightly. And while that wasn't exactly true – he could easily handle violence – they would burst his eardrums. Well, the fraccion would. Halibel would just look at him with disappointment and that would be even worse. "And you give me too much credit for stamina. However, I could offer you some courtship advice if you want." Starrk said seriously and while Ulquiorra was still expressionless, he could sense the other's ire rising. "The human equivalent to a fresh kill is a good box of chocolate." Orihime was watching them with a petrified expression, he noticed.

"Silence." Ulquiorra's reiatsu flowed out and Starrk pretended to wince, falling silent. "What are you really here for? Answer." He demanded and Starrk hunched a bit more before responding.

"I was just curious about her power. Grimmjow was showing off his new arm and I wanted to see." He said, a touch more honestly. He was curious to see if Inoue could be fit into his fledgling plans. Starrk doubted it, but you never knew. Then Ulquiorra moved. He was actually caught by surprise by the lightning fast move – Starrk made a mental note that Ulquiorra was quicker than he looked – and grunted as he was shoved against the wall, a hand choking tight around his neck. Fingers dug into his skin and a thin trickle of hot blood ran down his throat. Ulquiorra ran a finger down his bare chest, leaving a line of blood behind. From the power behind it, Starrk knew he meant it to be a deep, painful wound. It was actually barely a scratch, but fortunately Ulquiorra didn't realize that.

"You want to see her power, trash?" Ulquiorra said before running a second finger over his chest, crosswise to the first. Starrk grunted, gripping the Espada's wrist as more blood flowed. Thankfully, the wounds might be shallow but they were bleeding profusely. "Very well." The Espada threw him away and Starrk hit the ground hard, rolling to a halt against the wall. He lifted his head in a dazed fashion, seeing that Orihime had her hands over her mouth. "Heal him, woman." He commanded before putting his hands in his pockets and leaving the room. Inoue hurried over and raised her golden power around him. Starrk watched it curiously, evaluating the energies. It wasn't exactly how he'd imagined it happening but he was getting a close up view of her power.

He saw the moment, though, when Inoue realized he was barely scratched. She looked at him wide eyes and he could see the startled realization in her face. Starrk raised a finger to his lips in the old 'shh' gesture. Then he reached out, shattering her golden shield with a flicker of his power. He pulled himself to his feet, wiping off the drying blood with one hand as he gave her a small smile.

"Thank you, Orihime. Do you mind if I call you that?" He asked and she shook her head, looking at him with fearful fascination. "This has been enlightening." He said sincerely. He could see why Aizen had taken her… her power was truly remarkable. He had never felt anything like it before. "And don't worry." He gently rested a hand on her shoulder, bending over to speak softly in her ear. "Sooner or later, we'll all be free." He meant that with all his heart.

He was getting very, very tired of bending to other's whims.

* * *

><p><em>~Starrk, I have been thinking.~<em> A warm finger went down the centre of his chest and he smiled, enjoying the feel of warm bone against his skin. The final battle would be soon, so Halibel was not taking her resurrection.

_~What about?~_ He asked, feeling lazy and warm in the aftermath of coitus. The fraccion were also in the room, lazing about on the pillows. They had practiced hard in the morning, honing their skills. The afternoon, they had reserved for wonderful, leisurely sex. Halibel gazed at him through heavy lids before gripping his chin and pulling him in for a kiss. It was a bit odd, perhaps, with bone against flesh but he still enjoyed it.

_~I want you to become King.~_ She said and his eyes flared wide. _~Please, hear me out.~_

_~…Hn.~ _He wanted to automatically reject the idea because it would lead to his most hated thing… work. However, if he truly loved Halibel and she was just asking him to listen, well, he should do so. _~Go on.~_ He said with very little enthusiasm. She released his chin before continuing, determined.

_~I understand that you don't want to be King because it would make you a target. But Starrk, if you display your power in front of the shinigami and leave any of them alive, you'll be a target anyway.~_ She said and Starrk hesitated before nodding slightly. She had a point. _~And I know you. You won't massacre them all.~_

_~…No.~_ Starrk admitted. He wasn't that bloodthirsty and besides, he understood what shinigami did for the universe. How could he not, when he could read Hueco Mundo's winds? Soul Society could recover from having so many powerful shinigami murdered, but not easily. There would be a time of dangerous instability. _~What else?~_ He was sure she had more. Glancing over, he saw all of the fraccion watching. Starrk was sure Halibel had broached this with them before taking it to him.

_~I know you don't share Nelliel's dreams for our future. But I do.~ _She said softly and Starrk sighed before nodding. Halibel was more guarded about it – it could be considered a form of weakness – but he knew she did share Nel's ideals. She knew they were broken souls but dreamed that they could become more, building a true nation among the shattered shards of hopes and dreams. Starrk didn't really believe it was possible. _~You have the power to bring other hollows to our banner. You might even have the power to shatter their masks.~_ She said and Starrk winced, wishing he hadn't mentioned that. But he had seen several mask shatterings and his own power was enough that he'd done the same to himself. He was fairly certain he could learn to create arrancar, if he worked at it. _~You can build us into a nation.~_

_~With such wonderful raw materials.~_ Starrk sighed as he thought about it, lifting his gaze to the ceiling. _~Grimmjow, Szayel, Ulquiorra… I would have to govern these freaks?~_

_~You're forgetting Yammy.~_ Apacci piped up and Starrk snorted.

_~Fuck Yammy. He's a dead man.~_ He said bluntly. Grimmjow might survive, if he was lucky. He might not, too, depending on how mean Starrk was feeling. Yammy was going to die, one way or another. _~Mmm. Let me think.~_ Halibel waited patiently as he closed his eyes and thought about it. Did he want to do this?

No, of course he didn't. But more than his own wants were at stake. Halibel was right about what would happen if he revealed his power. A lone hollow, even one of his strength, would be an easier target than an army of them. And while the cold, cynical part of him thought it was unlikely hollows could ever be anything _better_, there was still a hopeful side of him that wanted to believe. Yet, he knew his own kind. Without a firm hand and a power they could respect, it would never happen. For all her strength, Nelliel was too kind hearted to inspire the loyalty of monsters.

_~Ah, kami… You are right. But if I take the throne, it will be on one condition.~_ He said firmly although he was sure Halibel would not object. _~You will be my Queen. I will not do this alone.~_ Starrk took her hand, gazing into her face. Bright green eyes met his and he could see the joy in them.

_~I would love that.~_ She said and Starrk smiled. Hollows did not marry – that was human sentimentality – but sharing the throne was the closest one of their kind could ever come. He kissed her cheek, just above her bone, and Halibel snuggled against his chest.

_~How beautiful. But what will you do with Barragan, if he survives?~_ Sung-Sun asked and Starrk considered it.

_~Kill him. He would always be more of a threat than an asset.~_ He said and Halibel nodded, her eyes flashing with dark satisfaction. Starrk liked that. That was the reason, if he was given a choice, he would take her over Nelliel any day. Halibel might hope for the future, but she still retained a core of practicality.

And if the future she envisioned was to happen, many people would have to die.

* * *

><p><em>The final battle.<em>

Starrk shuffled through the garganta, muffling a yawn behind his hand. He wasn't really tired, just playing the shiftless laze about. Glancing around from beneath hooded eyes, he quickly evaluated the forces they were facing.

To his senses, it wasn't very good. They were badly outnumbered, no matter how you sliced it. And there was something very odd, some strange null spots that to him screamed 'hidden enemies.' If he'd been facing this kind of force on his own, he would have retreated. And as for Karakura town itself… Starrk spotted the pillars instantly.

"That's clever." He murmured, wondering if Aizen had anticipated this. In the meeting he'd spied on, they'd just talked about which arrancar should face which enemy. They hadn't said anything about Karakura town being replaced by a replica. "Hn." Starrk yawned again, theatrically, then winced as a fist hit him in the head.

"Oi, wake up! We have a job to do!" Mila Rose said with a touch too much enthusiasm, to his jaundiced eye. Sighing to himself, Starrk accompanied the fraccion. They were – what?

"…" Starrk looked at the two shinigami girls and his eyes went exactly where they were supposed to go… to the cleavage of the red haired one. "Nice tits – OW!" There was a fist in the top of his head, but that wasn't all.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" Apacci and Mila demanded as Sung-Sun just looked at him. He could vaguely sense Halibel laughing silently as she faced off against the tiny taichou. Lilynette was picking her nose and sniggering at him.

"She has them on display! I can't not notice – OW!" More with the physical abuse. Starrk whimpered as an arm went around his throat. It didn't hurt, but it was quite annoying. "Girls, stop, you know I love you…" He tried to placate them as the two shinigami girls stared at the scene in front of them. "You wear me out, you know I would never stray…"

"Pfth. Wear you out? We all know how much power you have in reserve." Sung-Sun said sweetly and Starrk winced. "I'm sure these shinigami would be jealous if they knew your talents." That made him blush and he beat a hasty retreat, which had likely been the intent. Feminine laughter followed him and he hunched his shoulders a bit, feeling put upon. He would be a severely hen-pecked King…

Smiling at that vision of the future, he went to find his opponent. Not to his surprise, the man was guarding one of the pillars. Lilynette trailed behind him, carrying his gun in a holster around her waist. Starrk had officially made that her weapon. He was unsure what would happen to them if his other half was killed, but he didn't think it would be good. And while Lilynette couldn't really handle his sword – it was just too long – the gun suited her perfectly.

"Go play, but stay out of trouble." Starrk instructed her. He undoubtedly wouldn't need her energy to fight this man and he didn't want to call on her for anything so minor. All of Los Noches knew Lilynette was part of him, but they thought it was what had caused him to weaken. They didn't know she was part of his power and could be called back to reform what he'd once been. She scowled at him.

"I'm not a kid Starrk!" But she wandered off to go find something to do. Starrk only hoped she heeded his words. Her gun could make her a worthwhile opponent and if a shinigami took her seriously he might need to intervene. Leaving that alone, he prepared to do battle.

Well. After a fashion.

"You seem a bit down. Would you like a cookie?" He offered the shinigami, who did seem genuinely depressed. "I have chocolate chip." It was in the pocket of his hakama. Extracting the thing, he looked at it dubiously. "If you don't mind a bit of lint. And I already took a bite. And it's a bit squashed… never mind." He ate it himself. It was really too good to waste. "I dun wanna fwight – mrph." He swallowed the cookie, scraping sweet goo off his teeth. "Sorry. I don't want to fight. Can we, I don't know, flip a coin or something to see who wins?" A ridiculous suggestion and from the look on Kira's face, he didn't like it.

"No. Who are you, arrancar?" He asked and Starrk shrugged before responding.

"Coyote Starrk, fraccion to Tia Halibel, Tercero Espada." He said, glancing to the side. Lilynette was harassing a shinigami with white hair, a taichou from the feel of is reiatsu. Thankfully, he seemed to think she was adorable. It helped that she hadn't used the gun yet. That would no doubt change his opinion in a hurry. "Brat… mph. Well, shall we get this over with then?" He asked before drawing his sword.

Soon they were trading blows. Starrk treated it like a training exercise, pushing Kira to the limits of his abilities but not past them. The shinigami probably felt he was holding out well, not realizing his opponent was playing with him. However, his whole bearing struck Starrk as odd. He seemed very unhappy? He suddenly used a wind based kido attack. Starrk moved so fast that he left an afterimage behind, which appeared to be trapped in the whirlwind. It vanished a second later and Kira realized what was happening, turning rapidly to find his real opponent. Starrk watched him thoughtfully.

"You don't seem to be enjoying yourself." He remarked and Kira just looked at him with that deeply depressed air. "Why is that?" He was enjoying himself a little. Only a little, because Kira was no kind of challenge. Still, he was having fun.

"War is not enjoyable, arrancar." He said and Starrk quirked an eyebrow at him. "War is cause for despair, dark and horrifying. And that is how it should be. It encourages us to find a non-violent way to solve our problems." Starrk blinked, surprised by the philosophy. However…

"You are wrong." He flatly contradicted the man, who frowned at him. "War is a source of great pleasure. The feel of a weapon in your hand, the adrenaline pumping, the do or die moment… that is a joy." He felt that pleasure, although only with a worthy opponent. "And that is the tragedy of war. Because it is the aftermath that is horrifying. When you stand on the field of battle, the blood becoming tacky on your clothing as the sweat dries, chilling you… when you look around and see the corpses, the torn bodies of your enemies… you know the horror you have helped create." Starrk said and saw Izuru's eyes widen. The man was truly paying attention to him, now. "You think, I know these men had mothers and fathers. Did they have wives? Children? And as you walk, you find one of your own men. And then you know… there is a little girl who will never see her father again. That is when you know despair, when it is too late to change a thing." Starrk said, tasting that bleakness. There was a soul within him who knew the taste of it so well. "And that is why we will never learn. Because the first taste of war is sweet… the dregs are what is bitter."

"…That is a surprising thing to hear from a hollow. Where did you come by that philosophy, Coyote?" He asked and Starrk could tell the use of his name denoted some respect. Not much, perhaps, but some.

"On the field of battle, Izuru." He said easily before resting a hand against his chest. "I am a soul collection. I contain many souls, and their wisdom." Not that most hollows were like that. He was unique in being able to draw so fully on his soul collection. "I was that man, a great conqueror. And despite the darkness he saw, he never once stopped. The victory was too sweet to him, the lures too strong. That says something about us, no?" Starrk said with a crooked smile. Perhaps he was cynical, but he thought war would never change. Kira's dreams of war being avoided were fantasies, even more ridiculous than Nel's dreams, in their own way. Glancing around, he took in the fraccion. They were just summoning Ayon and Halibel had gone to her resurrection. Nelliel was fighting the man with the swords and now his white haired companion as well. That worried him greatly because he could tell Lilynette was becoming restless. She was thinking of interfering and that could go badly indeed. "Shall we continue?" He said politely and Kira lifted his sword. Soon they were clashing again.

This time, though, Kira began making more use of kido. Starrk examined the spells thoughtfully, wishing he had more leisure to learn their structure. It was fascinating. Then Kira unleashed his shikai and Starrk blinked at the shape of it. What was it…?

"…!" His breath whistled through his teeth as he crossed swords with the man. Kira struck his blade once, twice, three times in quick succession. Starrk managed to maintain his grip on the sword but the increased weight seriously compromised his ability to fight. Another blow, then a fifth, and he could no longer hold the weapon up. The blade sank into the hard concrete of the building as he struggled to pull it free.

"I regret your passing, Coyote Starrk." The weapon went around his throat and Starrk suddenly understood the purpose of it. A reverse guillotine, what a cruel and unusual thing. "However, the path of duty is clear."

"Mph." Starrk lifted a single hand and caught the weapon before it could encounter his throat… and the iron hard hierro beneath. The sword trembled in his grip but did not move and he heard a soft intake of breath behind him. "Tell me, Izuru Kira. What would happen if you tried to use this weapon against, say, your old taichou? Ichimaru Gin?" He asked, knowing the answer. There was a silence behind him so he filled it in. "It wouldn't work. This is a reality warping effect and his power would overwhelm yours. Is that not so?"

"…That is true. And what of it?" Kira asked and Starrk chuckled.

"Everything." His sword abruptly flared with blue fire and he pulled it from the ground before sliding backwards in a lightning move, slipping away from Izuru's sword. The shinigami's eyes went wide but he had no time to respond as Starrk called on a fraction of his true power, his eyes flaring with blue fire. A moment later the shinigami was on the ground, a sharp sword tight against his throat. "I would regret your death as well, Izuru Kira." He said before smiling. "Fortunately for you, Gin asked me to spare your life." Starrk balled up a fist and struck the man's temple before he could blink. Eyes rolled back in his head and Starrk straightened before going towards the pillar. Pausing, he regarded it thoughtfully. He was supposed to destroy it but he didn't want to.

"Isn't anyone going to stop me?" He asked the world. The world replied in the form of a kido followed by a white haired taichou with two swords. "Oh, hello. Did you have fun with Lilynette?" He asked, skipping back and raising his hands in a pacific gesture. Then there was a powerful cero blast, which the taichou dodged easily. "LILYNETTE!" Starrk snapped as the little girl looked at him with a guilty expression. "What did I tell you?!"

"But he was attacking you! You're me so he was attacking me too! He was attacking US! Why can't I shoot him?" She asked and Starrk groaned. Then the white haired man waved a sword and spoke.

"Little girls should not be playing with guns! You should be playing games, like soccer!" He said and Starrk smiled as he saw Lilynette's outrage. Before she could speak, he put in his two cents.

"Yes, you should." He said firmly and she gave him a betrayed and outraged look.

"OI! YOU ASSHOLE!" She tried to hit him but missed as he dodged. "You know arrancar don't age! I'm not really a kid!"

"Yes you are." Starrk contradicted. "Szayel determined when we broke our masks and it was eight years ago. You didn't even exist before that. So technically, you're YOUNGER than you look." She looked to be twelve, which was deceptive, but the opposite direction a shinigami might expect.

"OI! Who's side are you ON? You bastard – HEY!" Lilynette yelped as he grabbed the gun away from her. "STARRK!"

"Hush. It's time." He said and her eye widened before a fiendish grin crossed her face. Then he rested a hand on her head and called her power into himself. She vanished in a sparkle of blue light. "Kick About, Los Lobos!" He commanded, assuming his first resurrection. The burst of power was too much, which was why he'd never done it in Los Noches. "…Hn." He blinked, quickly adapting to missing his vision in one eye. He was still holding his sword and gun. They were unchanged, the power within still quiescent. That was good but… the shinigami put it into words.

"What rank of Espada are you?" He asked and Starrk winced.

"I'm not an Espada. Just a powerless fraccion…" The look on the shinigami's face indicated complete disbelief. "…You're not buying it, are you?" Starrk said, resigned. The shinigami shook his head with a small smile. "Fine. Coyote Starrk, extremely powerful and underestimated fraccion to Tia Halibel. Is that better?" It was more honest, at least. "May I ask your name?"

"Ukitake Juushiro, taichou of the Thirteenth Division." He said and Starrk was about to speak when he felt movement. He ducked just as a black blade went over his head and replied with a vicious slash, countering a second blade with his gun. The shinigami just barely avoided his blade, his hat taking a bit of damage.

"HEY! That's really rude, attacking us while we're talking!" He heard Lilynette's outraged voice from his gun but ignored it, laying down a bit of cover fire, keeping the two taichou busy as he evaluated his chances. Against two, without using his full power, it wasn't too good. And he didn't dare call on his full power just yet. And where was Nel? Examining the surroundings, he found her reiatsu. It was faint and from the feel of it, she was badly injured. Not great, but she was still alive. Then something caught his attention.

"DAMN!" He abandoned the battle, feeling his opponents' surprise as he raced towards the fraccion. What did they think they were doing?! Ayon had just attacked someone far too powerful for them!

It went as badly as Starrk would have expected. Ayon was cut in half and, compounding their error in judgment, the fraccion tried to destroy the shinigami who had done it. Starrk arrived just in time to absorb the burst of fire. Thankfully, he could tell it wasn't the shinigami's full strength. It still hurt, a lot, taking in that level of power when he was not in full release. His sword felt burning hot and even his bones ached. Starrk was barely aware of lines of steam, rising from his body.

_~Idiots! Retire from the battle immediately!~_ He snapped at the fraccion, flaring his reiatsu dangerously. They all reacted with instant submission.

_~Yes Starrk-sama!~_ That level of obedience indicated they knew how badly they had just screwed up. Of course, they'd felt the power he'd absorbed. It would have badly burned them all if not killed them outright. Starrk looked at the man he'd just stopped and saw he'd been joined by the two he was fighting. That was… incredibly bad. They were all very powerful. And he could tell he was attracting Aizen's attention. He could practically feel the weight of his regard and didn't like the sensation at all.

"I really don't want to fight you." He said quite sincerely. If he had to fight these three, he would be too badly drained to fight Aizen. And he was sure his 'leader' would dispose of him in his moment of weakness. After all, they were nothing but filthy hollows. "And you shouldn't want to fight me. I'm sure you could kill me but then you would all be badly drained." He was certain he could force them to use almost all their energy. It would be a clash of titans. The one with the straw hat chuckled softly.

"You managed to block a blow from Yama-jii, which is impressive. But you just barely managed it in your full resurrection. You give yourself too much credit." He said and Starrk lifted his eyebrows.

"Have you ever heard, shinigami, that assumptions make an ass out of you and me?" He asked lightly and saw the man smile at him slightly as the white haired one stared thoughtfully. The old man just watched and Starrk could feel the weight of his regard, a delicate probing of his power. "Full resurrection?" That was the faulty assumption the man was making. "BUT! I am merely a powerless fraccion and I did not sign up for suicide! I'll go take care of my women and make sure my Espada is alive." She was currently buried in ice and Starrk actually knew she was alive. Also highly irritated, judging from her reiatsu. "Please excuse me!" He quickly took off, hoping like hell the shinigami would leave him alone.

Fortunately, they did. Starrk was allowed to take cover with the fraccion, who were very subdued over their narrow escape. Although that didn't last long.

"We should go rescue Halibel-sama!" Apacci said and Starrk sighed to himself.

"Why?" He questioned and all three of them stared at him. _~She's safe enough in that ice and if we free her, Aizen will expect her to continue fighting. I think he's already a bit suspicious of us.~_ Although they at least had a fairly good reason to retire. They'd done significant damage to the fukutaichou and they were NOT a match for three taichou, one being the Soutaichou. _~Also, did you have to hurt that woman so badly? Gin won't be happy.~_ He'd asked if the fraccion could go easy on her. Starrk had promised to pass the message along, but cautioned him that they were unruly harpies.

_~We couldn't really help it. She was strong enough that Ayon was required and he doesn't listen to us at all.~_ Sung-Sun said and Starrk had to admit that she had a point. _~I'm really starting to wonder if he has ears. Maybe he is deaf.~_

_~Could be. What are those false-hollow things? Oh look.~_ They had been spotted. The small taichou and the two false-hollows who had helped him were coming to attack them. Starrk sighed to himself, readying his weapons.

_~You three get the annoying little one. I'll take on the other two.~_ The little one was not wearing her hollow mask but the other one was. Starrk was sure that amplified her power but he had a plan for how to deal with it. And surely the fraccion could handle the single false-hollow. What WAS that power? Aizen hadn't briefed them on it at all.

Leaping into the battle, Starrk noted that Barragan had fallen. In a way that was fine – he'd never liked the bastard – but in another way it wasn't good at all. With Nel down and Halibel imprisoned, the shinigami were running out of targets. Fortunately, Wonderweiss was going after the old man while Aizen and Gin engaged the two other taichou. Still, there were several powerful opponents left. None unscathed, but still going concerns. And he didn't want to waste too much energy…

"You know, you're a lovely woman." Starrk said to the girl as he engaged with her. She said nothing, just attacking him fiercely. Her mask hid her face completely, even her eyes. "But you would be far more beautiful if I could see your face." He sonido'd past her and brushed her mask with one hand. It shattered beneath his hollow power, revealing a stunned expression and large green eyes. "You see?" Then ice was flying at him and he was forced to dodge. She kept trying to attack him but without the mask, it was rather pathetic. Starrk brought the woman down with a non-lethal slash before devoting his attention to the small taichou.

"Your power depends on moisture in the air." Starrk said as they fought. He was concentrating hard and could vaguely hear Lilynette giggling. She was definitely enjoying herself. "Mine does not." His power was also largely based in cold, but it was the absence of heat, cold in its purest form. "Allow me to demonstrate…" He pushed himself into the fastest sonido he could muster and grasped the small taichou's sword arm before abruptly pulling all the heat into himself. He heard a gasp and let go, watching as the small taichou reeled away in agony, his sword falling from a suddenly nerveless hand. His arm had gone white and Starrk knew the damage might require the arm be rebuilt. It was not a kind attack but it removed the taichou from battle most effectively.

He briefly turned his attention to the fraccion and saw they had easily bested their opponent. Then he glanced towards the battle with Aizen and saw it was going very badly for the shinigami. The man in pink was down and from what he could sense, barely alive. Wonderweiss was gone but the Soutaichou was down as well, burned by his own power. Only the white haired man was still a going concern and he was going to die soon, from the looks of things.

He timed his intervention perfectly. Aizen was just getting ready to end the man's life, moving with insane speed. Starrk caught his blade before it could land and the white haired man looked at the clash of weapons, his eyes wide. Aizen's expression was mildly surprised.

"Starrk? Why are you protecting Ukitake?" He asked, genuinely puzzled.

"Because he annoyed Lilynette." Starrk answered and there was an outraged yelp from his gun?

"STARRK YOU ASSHOLE WHAT THE HELL! That's why you should kill him!" She protested and he smiled, not taking his gaze from Aizen. His lord and master was not taking them seriously, from the smile on his face and the way he was listening to the byplay.

"Consider it payback for the dress." He said easily and she sputtered. "Also, I want an audience for when I kill you." Starrk allowed blue fire to fill his eyes, finally let his reiatsu flow free. It was like a taste of pure death, a sucking cold. Aizen just laughed.

"A fraccion like you? Please. Go to your mistress, Starrk." Aizen said dismissively and Starrk's smile widened into a grin.

"She's not my mistress. I am her master." Then he called the power of his weapons. They vanished in a haze of blue mist… mist that flowed around him, coalescing into a final form. _"Come forth, Excalibur."_ That was the command of his final form, the myth that his own mind had turned into reality.

Starrk felt the armor form around his body and as the mist cleared he took a step forward, allowing a dramatic pause. He was wearing armor, black as the endless night, except for a cross of blue on his chest. That cross glowed with his power, misted with blue fire. There was a sword in his hand and it was a long, vicious looking blade. He vaguely knew why that was so… his female soul did not believe that Excalibur was real but if it was, she thought it would not be some ceremonial weapon, beautiful with jewels and gold. No, it would be a tool of butchery, a sword meant for spilling blood and ending lives. And that was what he held, a brutal, notched thing, bound with black leather. On his other arm there was a shield, black and with a cross that matched his chest. He vaguely sensed that the shield was Lilynette. On his back was a cloak of wolf pelts, a sign of his base form. And on his head there was… what?

"Starrk, are you wearing a crown?" Aizen still sounded amused but it was a touch forced. He sensed the deathly power that was filling the air, the icy reiatsu that was already plucking at him, attempting to devour his strength. Starrk smiled, an expression that exposed too many sharp teeth.

"Fit for the true king." He taunted before moving. Weapons clashed and Aizen's smile vanished entirely as he registered the speed of his rebellious warrior. Starrk attacked with brutal power, raising sparks from Aizen's weapon and driving him back. Then Aizen regrouped and attacked him just as strongly. The blade notched the armor of his shoulder but Starrk caught Aizen's arm, staining his clothing with blood. And Starrk could feel Aizen's rage growing with every moment, filling the air with his temper.

"You dare to betray me, Starrk?" He snarled before casting a kido with just a short word. Starrk managed to dodge, sensing the potent energies utterly demolishing a block of false Karakura town. He countered with a wickedly powerful cero. Another block met a fiery death and he was vaguely thankful that there were no actual humans present.

"Betray would imply that I had some loyalty to you in the first place, shinigami." Starrk made his race a taunt before smiling again, that smile that exposed his teeth. "Does it bother you, that I hid my power from you? Does it hurt, having your own tactics turned against you?" Aizen's reiatsu flared murderously and Starrk suddenly had to go on the defensive as he was attacked with tremendous force. He had to draw deeply from his soul collection, bringing forth the most potent warriors he had at his command, to counter that level of skill.

"You filthy hollow. Do you really believe you can become something more than a wretched, broken soul?" Aizen taunted him right back and Starrk laughed, a short, amused sound as they circled. His cloak of wolf pelts swirled behind him as their swords clashed, the clang of steel against steel rising through the air.

"God no! I'm just a filthy hollow." He said it cheerfully before firing a cero. It went past Aizen's shoulder as he dodged, but it did not behave like a normal cero. It hit the ground and raised a column of blue fire, which did not dissipate. Aizen hardly seemed to notice, but Starrk was keeping him very busy. "But Halibel wants me to try and I am putty in her hands – ungh." Starrk grunted as a slash got past his guard, sending dark blood flying. Narrowing his eyes, he concentrated hard. Aizen was no one he could take lightly.

As they fought, though, Starrk was doing two different things. He had fully unleashed his reiatsu. While Aizen was too strong to simply be gulped down, the endless hunger in his core was licking at his energy, gradually draining him. The longer the battle went on the more it favored Starrk, and the rage on Aizen's face indicated that he understood that. He was spending his full strength, trying to end the impudent arrancar quickly, but it was not enough. As for Complete Hypnosis… Starrk smiled wickedly.

He'd never seen it. Just like Kurosaki Ichigo, he'd never been exposed to Aizen's sword. That had been pure luck, at first. He hadn't known how the sword worked and he'd been too weak, too inconsequential for Aizen to seek him out. But Gin had enlightened him and after that he'd been very, very careful to never look when Aizen was releasing his sword. Aizen was realizing that too and his face smoothed into a calm mask.

"Starrk, if you want to be the King of Hueco Mundo, I can grant that to you." Aizen said, attempting to use his honeyed words. Starrk regarded that with amused contempt.

"If you think for one moment I'll believe a word you say, you're insane." Starrk said bluntly. His eyes narrowed as he registered an opening and just as quickly recognized it for a feint. "I have a power. Wolf stalks from the shadows… it's useless in combat." Otherwise, he wouldn't be talking about it. It could be used for a sneak attack, but once the surprise was gone it couldn't be used again. "But it let me spy on you, your little talks with Gin and Tosen… you disgust me, _shinigami._" He put every bit of his contempt, his loathing into that word. Aizen's eyes widened a touch at the intensity of it. "I know precisely how much you value us." Which was not at all. Expendable cannon fodder, to be thrown away as Aizen willed… just the thought made Starrk grind his teeth. He understood the mindset perfectly well, from his female soul, but that only enhanced his rage. The boy who had made him found it repulsive while the woman was offended. They were not fodder.

"Then die, fraccion." Aizen taunted him with his rank before attacking full force. The hogyoku flared and Starrk's power flared back, attempting to devour the strength even as he blocked the blow, feeling the aching pain in his bones. But the strike was a feint… Starrk twisted but a blade still caught him, sank into his side. He caught the sword and replied with a cero, too fast for Aizen to dodge. The hit him hard and he was blasted back, taking his blade with him. Starrk panted for a moment, feeling the hot blood trickling down his side. Not a good wound but his body was already closing it. Narrowing his eyes, he launched his own attack.

As the battle continued it became more and more vicious. Starrk fired more of the ceros-that-weren't, creating four more pillars of blue fire in the right places. They both took injuries, more and more. Aizen tried to summon more power from the hogyoku, change his form, but found that he could not. Starrk had eaten too much of it already. The look on his face when he realized that was pure murder and Starrk had to pull on every ounce of skill he owned, to handle the following attacks. He was still wounded, several times. Even with the immense soul collection he owned, he was having trouble. Aizen was incredibly skilled…

But Aizen didn't realize that Starrk had a plan. His moment came when the evil bastard slammed a kido into him, sending him to the ground and raising a great cloud of dust. Starrk pulled himself up, spitting out a bit of blood and feeling it trickling down his face, beneath his crown. (What did that look like anyway? He would need a mirror later.) Lifting his head, he saw Aizen readying himself for a follow up attack. The man was definitely taking him seriously and for excellent reason… Starrk grinned widely, showing his sharp fangs before he brought up his sword and plunged it into the ground.

"_AVALON!"_ That was the name of the afterlife, the promised land. A strange name for his ultimate technique, perhaps, but it would send anyone to their death… the five pillars of blue fire erupted, lines of force connecting to each other in a five pointed star of blue. Starrk briefly hoped that no one was within those lines. If so, they died as everything within the star ceased to exist. Buildings, plants, even rocks were obliterated, turning into a tide of pure reishi that flowed to the centre of the star… the sword he'd driven into the earth.

The blast that followed was titanic. Starrk was the only thing unaffected, for he was the conduit, the channel for that awesome power. Everything around him was obliterated, reduced to nothing but drifting debris and spiritual slag. Except for Aizen. The hogyoku could withstand even that, but Starrk could feel that his power was almost spent as the man slumped to his knees for a moment, gasping. His whole body was damaged from the force he'd taken but Aizen forced himself to his feet, glaring at him.

"You… cretin! You can never defeat me! I am immortal!" Aizen's voice was raspy and Starrk was sure he thought that was true. It was certainly proving very difficult to put him down. "All you are ensuring is that I will make your death more – ARGH!" Aizen's cry of pain was echoed by Starrk's grunt.

_OW!_ Starrk looked down at the blade that had impaled him from behind, mildly annoyed. Gin had laughingly suggested he might shoot through him but Starrk hadn't thought he would actually _do_ it. If his power hadn't been so badly used the weapon might not have gone through both sides of his armor, something he was thankful it had managed. If it hadn't the whole thing would have just been pathetic. But Shinso had passed through his belly and from there, into Aizen's chest. His wound was painful but non-lethal. Aizen's was quite different… for a normal person, at least. Shinso left Aizen's body with a wet, sucking sound, and pulled back through Starrk's.

"He better not have anything." Starrk muttered. That had contaminated him with Aizen's blood quite thoroughly. Then he blinked as he realized that was idiotic. How much blood had he lost, precisely? Fortunately Gin was ignoring him, smiling as he explained the properties of his zanpakuto to a stunned Aizen. Then he used it.

Starrk darted forward as Aizen arched in agony, the poison eating his chest and revealing the hogyoku. Gin hadn't wanted to let him do this but he had insisted. They had to be absolutely sure… as he grabbed the stone he unleashed his power, the full force of his endless hunger. Blue fire lit the rogue shinigami from within and Aizen screamed as Starrks' hideous power devoured him, finally severing his bond to the hogyoku. Starrk didn't particularly want to take the man's soul, but he had no choice. He felt it join his soul collection and grimaced to himself. Fortunately, his female soul was every bit a match for Aizen…

And that almost proved his undoing. As his hand closed over the hogyoku, he felt an intense desire. To take the stone, make it part of him. Take over Aizen's quest, become a god. After all, why not? He was every bit as powerful as Aizen had been _with_ the hogyoku. What could he do with it? What could he…

"Gin. Quickly." Starrk grated out as he raised his hand, forcing the fingers open. This had been their agreement. He would give the hogyoku to Gin. "_Take it!"_ Before his desire, the aching need for more and more power, overwhelmed him. A pale hand darted out and the stone vanished from his armored palm, to his intense relief. "…" Starrk pressed a hand against his chest, gasping for a moment. "Sorry." That was a bit embarrassing, almost losing control of himself like that.

"Heh. I thought you might try somethin' like that. Glad you made the right decision." Gin tapped his sword with a smile. Starrk's gaze followed his gesture, puzzled. He was touching the little hole that he'd showed to Aizen… but then his finger went down and… there was a second hole?

Starrk felt the laughter bubbling in the back of his throat and couldn't hold it back. It came out in chuckles, then a deep, full belly laugh. Gin's smile widened as he heard it and Starrk laughed until there were tears in his eyes and all his wounds ached.

"Ah, Gin, you're more twisted than I am!" Starrk said with a smile as he felt Lilynette's irritation in the back of his mind. "Well. Weren't you going to give that to someone? Why don't I guard your back, in the interests of keeping my guts where they should be?" Gin could activate that bit of poison at any time, for now at least. Starrk had an idea that it would eventually vanish if left unused.

"Wasn't gonna ask, Starrky-chan. But if you want t' help I'd like that." Gin said lightly. "But you might wanna seal up a bit. Don' think Ran-chan could take you like this." Starrk nodded and resealed his sword and gun. That left him in his first resurrection and he blinked as he lost half his eyesight again. That was so odd, and he had two eyes in his second resurrection.

"Wow, that was great Starrk!" Lilynette said from his gun and he smiled at her. She'd been very silent during the battle with Aizen but he'd felt her in the back of his head, a comforting presence. "You really kicked ass!"

"Mmm hmm." That, he'd definitely done. Starrk trailed behind Gin as he went to the kido ward someone had erected around the injured. The white haired taichou was waiting there for him and his friend was bandaged and conscious, although no kind of threat. He'd lost the pink kimono and was looking battered and bedamned, to Starrk's eyes. The fraccion met him there and Starrk was relieved to see they were well. He'd been worried about whether or not they could survive his release, although he'd suspected they could. In addition to being arrancar, they'd been exposed to his power through hundreds of matings.

Gin knelt beside Rangiku, cradling the hogyoku in his hands like it was precious. Starrk didn't know how he intended to get her soul fragment out, or if he planned to just give her the whole thing. If so, what would the shinigami do? Maybe they could somehow seal it inside her? Dismissing it from his mind, he looked at the two taichou in front of him. They seemed to be waiting for him to say something. Hmm…

"You know, I've defeated Aizen for you. And you don't look strong enough to defeat me if I try to kill you and take over Soul Society." Starrk said idly and saw the white haired man's expression go grim. His friend looked equally grim. "However, I have no interest in ruling Soul Society." That sounded FAR too much like work. "SO!" He lifted his sword, pointing it at them. "I am the conquering tyrant and I demand a tribute!"

"What do you want, arrancar?" The white haired man sounded calm and controlled. Starrk smiled at him cheerfully.

"I want a case of wine!" From the wide eyed surprise on both their faces, they hadn't been expecting that. "The best you can get! And a pair of wedding bands! Yellow gold, and make them sparkly!" He said before thinking better of it. "But tasteful. Maybe with aquamarines?" That would be highly suitable. Then his gun made an excited sound.

"You're going to get married Starrk?! Like a human would? WOW! We need a big party! HEY! Let's get some tulle!" She said, which made him wince.

"No tulle." He said firmly, giving his gun a glare. Lilynette was not the least bit intimidated.

"But I LOVE tulle! And Los Noches is so boring! We could string it up and soften all that white!" Lilynette said and Starrk scowled.

"You love tulle on ME! I'm not letting you put me in a dress again. No tulle!" He knew where that was going to end up. "Maybe some fresh flowers. Or maybe silk ones? That might be more practical. I don't know if the water system will be working." Heaven knew what he might be going home to. Then the fraccion got into the game.

"This is great! We should have a big coronation. Maybe we should get a roasted beast or something?" Apacci said with a grin and Starrk considered it, frowning.

"I thought we could just eat Grimmjow – ow! What?" He'd just been slapped by Mila Rose. Starrk was vaguely aware of the shinigami watching them with amusement and interest. "Do you think he wouldn't taste good – OW!" More with the physical abuse. But then Cyan spoke musingly.

"What about Yammy? Will we let him go to waste?" She asked and Starrk scowled at the thought.

"Yes. Grimmjow, I'll take into my soul collection. Yammy? I'm going to tear him apart and leave him for the crows." He was damned if he'd welcome any souls from that filth into his collection.

"We'll need a cake too!" Mila suddenly said and Starrk immediately liked the idea. "A nice big ornamental one. Maybe with bows? Or flowers?"

"I don't think silk flowers would – OW!" His gun had bit him? Starrk blinked at it, a bit taken aback. "Lilynette?"

"You guys totally don't deserve this but I'm gonna tell you anyway. There's not going to be a wedding OR a coronation if you don't do something!" She said and Starrk just looked at her blankly as the fraccion exchanged glances. "OI! Halibel's still on ice and she's REALLY SUPER PISSED with you Starrk!" His eyes went wide as the fraccion turned as one to look. Sure enough, the ice pillar was still there and intact.

"HALIBEL-SAMA!" All three of them took off and Starrk followed right behind with a muffled 'shit'. Now that it was pointed out, he could tell that Halibel was indeed furious with them all and him in particular. He was going to have to do a lot of begging and groveling in the near future.

Fortunately, Halibel could be quite forgiving. It might take a while, but he was sure she would eventually accept his wedding ring.


	6. Chapter 6 - Previously chapter 5, ugh

Starrk allowed his cloak of fur to swirl around him as he ascended his throne. Taking a seat, he propped his left foot over his right knee before examining his 'court' with narrowed eyes.

To his vague disappointment, Yammy had been deceased when he arrived. The two shinigami taichou had finished him, along with Zommari and Aaroniero. Szayel had also died, leaving Ulquiorra and Grimmjow as the only survivors of power on this side of things. Starrk was less than delighted. He trusted Ulquiorra even less than Gin.

Thinking about the man led him to glance over at him. Gin was on his left side, his brand new 'advisor'. Starrk actually did trust him, mainly because he had nowhere to go. If he went to Soul Society he would stand trial for his crimes and in the Living World, he would be hunted down. Gin had considered staying there anyway but had decided to follow the hollows, mostly out of morbid curiosity. He'd cheerfully told Starrk that he thought the whole thing would end in tears and he was looking forward to seeing it crash down around their heads.

On his right side was Halibel. There was no second throne yet, but that would come soon. He'd get the shinigami to supply it as part of the 'tribute'. Starrk smiled at the thought. Some of the shinigami were mortally offended by their 'conquering', but the more levelheaded among them thought it was hilarious. It wasn't like he was driving them into bankruptcy with his demands. There was even some tentative talk about opening official diplomatic relations. That also amused Gin, since it was a dramatic departure from how shinigami had always viewed hollows. You didn't talk to filthy, debased monsters.

Starrk lifted his head as the remaining Espada were ushered into the room. Nelliel, Grimmjow and Ulquiorra. Nelliel wasn't too surprised – she'd had some suspicions about him – but for Grimmjow and Ulquiorra, it was a massive shock. Starrk could feel Ulquiorra's power ghosting over him, evaluating him in his full resurrection. Gin had placed wards over the throne room, helped with spikes of pure seki stone, so this would be his first taste of it. Starrk was also holding his deathly aura in, as much as he could. Still, Ulquiorra clearly had a good grasp of what he was now dealing with.

Grimmjow, however, did not have a hot clue.

"Hey Starrk! You got delusions of grandeur or something? Nice crown ya fucker!" He said with a laugh and Starrk lifted his gaze to the ceiling for a moment, begging the almighty for patience. He really shouldn't kill one of the few remaining hollows of power. It really was so tempting though…

"Thank you, I'm glad you like my fashion sense." He said dryly, resting his cheek against his fist. (What did his crown look like? He still needed a mirror.) "However…" He carefully checked the room, confirming that his new 'aides' were outside before allowing his power to flow outwards. It was like a touch of pure death and Grimmjow was suddenly gasping as Ulquiorra closed his eyes and Nelliel flinched. Halibel and the fraccion hardly reacted, acclimatized to the energies from long exposure. "I think you should kneel before your king." He surged to his feet, glaring down dangerously at the blue haired arrancar.

"How the… fuck…?" Grimmjow choked out and Starrk smiled. It was the same one he'd given Aizen, the one that exposed far too many teeth.

"I have killed Aizen Sosuke." Technically, Gin deserved half the credit but he wasn't going to confuse them. And Gin didn't give a damn anyway. "The throne of Los Noches is mine, and all of you have a choice. Bow to me or leave my territory, forever."

"What do you consider your territory?" Ulquiorra asked as Grimmjow stared at him, his mind apparently broken. Starrk thought that was a good question. With his reiatsu, he could lay claim to far more of Hueco Mundo than Barragan had, and the old Kings reach had not been small. Starrk considered it for a moment, tapping on his armor.

"Only the bounds that Barragan held." That was more than enough. It would give any arrancar who didn't want to swear to him, or hollows who preferred to remain unaligned, some breathing room. Barragan had not always respected those limits – he'd pretended to own all of Hueco Mundo, when it was convenient for him – but Starrk intended to. "Do you intend to leave, then?" He wasn't sure how he felt about that, if he was. Ulquiorra had been exceedingly loyal to Aizen and that made it hard for Starrk to trust him, but he was very powerful. They were very outnumbered by the shinigami and despite his horrific personal power, Starrk wanted supporters. Could he have defeated the two taichou and the Soutaichou altogether, given what he'd done to Aizen? Maybe… maybe not, too. In Hueco Mundo, they could use their bankai. He'd learned why they hadn't, in the aftermath of his victory.

Pulling his mind away from the condition of the Living World, Starrk waited for Ulquiorra's reply. The former Quatro, current Tercera (were they going to keep those ranks? He'd have to think about it) finally spoke.

"Before I decide I wish to know. Why did you betray Aizen-sama? Did you want his position?" For hollows that was a valid reason to betray someone. However, Starrk shook his head with a small smile.

"No, not at all." He said immediately. "I would prefer not to be King. However, now that I have painted a great target on my back by defeating Aizen in front of shinigami, it is only practical." He glanced at Gin, who smiled inscrutably. "I betrayed him because he meant to betray us." That was really the only reason. If Aizen had been playing straight with them, Starrk might have revealed himself and taken his place as an Espada. "I managed to spy on one of his private meetings and confirm it with Gin."

"He's tellin' the truth." Gin added helpfully. "Aizen was just gonna keep you all around 'til you weren't needed no more. Then…" He drew a thumb across his throat. Grimmjow growled and Starrk saw his eyes flash. After his rough treatment, the Sexta would have no problems believing it. Nelliel looked deeply saddened and downcast, but not terribly surprised. Her problems with Nnoitra had led her to doubt Aizen's sincerity. Starrk nodded.

"If Aizen had meant to uphold his bargains, I might have stood beside you as an Espada. But I will not be used and led to my death by shinigami." Pausing, he regarded Ulquiorra again. "Will you join me? I will not hold it against you if you do not." But if Ulquiorra joined him to plot against him, he would make the bat regret it. That hardly needed to be said, though. Ulquiorra considered it for a long moment before nodding.

"I will join you under one condition." He said and Starrk tilted his head. "The woman. I wish to see her again."

"…Hm." He didn't have a formal treaty with the shinigami yet. "Very well. I will make it a condition of any treaty, that you be allowed to go to the Living World to see her." The shinigami might want them all to stay in Hueco Mundo but Starrk would insist on the exception. "But you must treat her with respect." He said firmly. He knew that had been rather lacking before, which was fair enough given that she'd essentially been a prisoner. "No harming her or any of her friends." That last part might get sticky but hopefully the shinigami could pass on a message. Ulquiorra nodded, expressionless. "Now, let me…" Concentrating, Starrk sealed to his first resurrection. Then he sealed further, allowing Lilynette to manifest. She stretched out, looking pleased to escape his body. "Shall we go to the meeting room? It's more comfortable and we have things to discuss." Although… "Grimmjow, if you get bored you can just leave. I won't be offended." Aizen had made him sit through meetings when the Sexta clearly couldn't give less of a crap.

"Shit, maybe I won't even come. What're we going to be talking about?" He asked and Starrk quirked an eyebrow at him before responding.

"You might want to stay for the first part, which is what we will propose for our treaty with the shinigami." That was of more than passing interest to everyone. "You might want to leave for the second part, which will be a discussion of my coronation and wedding preparations." Sure enough, Grimmjow made a face. Nelliel's reaction, though, was typical of females everywhere.

"You're getting married?! Really? How will that work?" She asked, which was a good question. Hollows didn't believe in such things. Of course, their version of marriage was not what most shinigami and humans would consider binding.

"We are going to speak vows we have written to each other, and exchange rings." There would be nothing to bind them beyond their own will, which suited Starrk just fine. He would never lie to Halibel. "But we really should take this to the meeting rooms. My aides have tea and cookies waiting." That was Loly and Menolly. Like most weaker hollows, they were willing to transfer allegiance when their pack leader fell to a challenger. Starrk was sure they would be devoted to him, too, right until the moment he lost his seat. Taking the hint, the remaining Espada filed out. Starrk wondered if Ulquiorra would stay loyal to him, or if he would attempt to free his Aizen-sama. If he did, Starrk might have to take action.

They would just have to see.

* * *

><p>"There is no way to fix this?" Starrk asked the healing arrancar who was tending to Cirucci Sanderwicci. He really didn't know the female well. However, he hated the look on her face, the despair as she stared at a nearby wall.<p>

"None. I am sorry, Starrk-sama." He said as Cirucci closed her eyes. Starrk sighed, reaching up to run a hand through his hair.

He'd returned from the Living World just in time to save her from the Exequias. Part of that, though, had been due to her own cleverness… regaining some control of her body, she'd managed to hide herself from the fate she knew was coming. Aizen had little tolerance for failure. He was similar to Barragan in that but with full knowledge of his plans, his elimination of 'failures' took on a far darker interpretation…

However, that did not matter. What mattered was the fact that Cirucci was alive and more powerless than the lowest numero. She had less energy to call than Lilynette, which meant her life would be very short and unpleasant if he did nothing. If she'd realized how bad it was, perhaps she wouldn't have hidden from the Exequias at all. But Cirucci hadn't known and now, she was still alive.

One option, of course, was to take her into the fraccion. However, Starrk couldn't think of a single thing she could do for them. With her chain of fate broken, she couldn't even withstand the girls' mating energies, let alone him and Halibel. She could serve as an aide and a fetcher of things, but Lilynette, Loly and Menolly were already filling that spot. For that matter, the fraccion often played fetch. They were both hollows, he could just let her die – Cirucci clearly expected nothing else – but that option made him feel queasy. The male soul he held did not like the thought of allowing a 'damsel in distress' to perish. Starrk smiled crookedly. His other side thought that was idiotic. Then something occurred to him and he blinked.

"Perfect." It really was perfect. Hadn't he been thinking of who would fill that position? "Cirucci, I have an idea of what you can do for me." She looked at him, but there was no hope in her violet eyes. "I want you to be my ambassador to the shinigami." She was ideal. Before, her temper and arrogance would have weighed against her. But the destruction of her personal power would fix that and she was an intelligent woman. She blinked, a bit of life coming back to her eyes. She even pushed herself up with her elbows, meeting his gaze more evenly.

"But how could I? My power…" She said and he shrugged.

"What does it matter? You will be surrounded by powerful shinigami. If they chose to break off any negotiations with me, anyone I send would die. Nelliel herself could not stand against them." He said and Cirucci winced. "You will be given respect among them as my representative, not for your personal power. And shinigami are not hollows. They fancy themselves to be 'civilized' and do not prey on the weak." That was a critical difference. In Hueco Mundo, Cirucci would need a powerful protector but she could offer very little aside from her body. And without enough power to withstand mating strains, she was in a dire position. "And I believe you are intelligent enough to represent my interests." Loyal was debatable, but Cirucci was no pro-Aizen fanatic after her near fatal experience. "Will you accept?" She would be insane not to. After a moment, she nodded.

"Yes. When will I be going?" She asked and Starrk immediately answered.

"Not for a month." The shinigami weren't interested in talking to him right now. They were still working very, very hard cleaning up the mess he'd made of the Living World. Starrk had offered to help but they had declined… apparently, releasing bankai level powers in the Living World, especially bankai powers that had such deep effects on the environment, was an awful idea. He and Aizen had very nearly caused a massive earthquake in addition to more esoteric damage to the fabric of reality. Starrk felt a bit bad about that. He'd really had no idea that the Living World was more fragile than Hueco Mundo. It was too bad for the shinigami that Aizen's plans had dictated that the battle start there. "Until then, you may stay in my quarters." They were doing away with the wings. Most of them were very badly damaged anyway and Starrk didn't see the point of repairing them. The whole scope of Los Noches seemed ridiculous to him. Instead, they were working with Aizen's personal area, repairing any damages and making it more defensible. That put them together more closely than they were accustomed to and there was a bit of snarling and posturing going on, but Starrk was sure the hollows would adapt. Cirucci nodded, real life and energy returning to her face.

"I will serve you well, Starrk-sama." She pledged and he smiled at her before reaching out to grip her shoulder.

"Good. Let me carry you to my quarters." If she had to walk it would take a while. Aizen's wing wasn't that small. She nodded and he gently lifted her up before carrying her off. Mentally, he resigned himself to some ribbing from the fraccion about his 'new conquest'. They would know it was ridiculous but they would tease him about it anyway. And the truth was, he enjoyed it.

Even if he could change things, he wouldn't have it any other way.

* * *

><p>The wedding and coronation was held a full two months after that.<p>

That gave the shinigami time to clean up the Living World and send him his 'tribute', as well as supply some kido builders to make a new throne and fix some of the damage to Los Noches. Starrk had tasked Ulquiorra with watching them to make certain they weren't planting any surveillance devices. He would have put Gin on that but oddly enough, he seemed to frighten the builders to the point that they started making mistakes where Ulquiorra did not. Starrk supposed that fear of the unknown was less than fear of the known all too well.

The wedding ceremony was held in Aizen's throne room. There was no tulle, despite Lilynette's pouting. There were plenty of silk and paper flowers though, held in vases. Also, the walls had been softened by tapestries. Those were on loan and would be returned after the wedding, although Starrk rather liked them. Was there anything he could trade to the shinigami? He knew there were seki stone formations. Could the crystals be worth anything…?

Putting that thought away for later, he smiled as he saw Halibel. He hadn't thought to ask for a gown… that had been Kyoraku's suggestion. It was on loan, just like his tuxedo, and it was gorgeous. It was a mermaid gown, which was very appropriate, white trimmed with blue. The bust sparkled with crystals and Halibel smiled as she saw him. She was in her resurrection, minus the bone skirt. His garb was much simpler in comparison. He was wearing only a black and white tuxedo. He wasn't in his resurrection because –

"Oi! Go on Starrk!" Ah, the voice of his other half. Starrk smiled as he began walking. Since he really had no one to act as groomsmen, they had dispensed with all that. It would be just the two of them, exchanging their vows. Lilynette was carrying the rings on a pillow, splendid in her blue silk gown. She followed behind him, happiness practically radiating from her. Halibel's happiness was more restrained but he could still see it in her smile, the glow in her eyes. He took her hands, speaking his vows in a carrying voice. They would be a promise, not just to her, but to all the listening arrancar.

"I promise to love and cherish you, and always be worthy of your love.  
>I will always be honest with you, no matter how hard the truth might be.<br>I will give your opinions equal weight with mine. In every way, we are equals.  
>I will do all I can to make your dreams a reality,<br>And support you until we are no more." Halibel took a deep breath and Starrk could see his words had touched her heart. Then she began to speak.

"I promise to love you, always holding you first in my heart.  
>I will always respect you, no matter how much we might disagree.<br>If fate blesses us, I will give you children to raise and cherish.  
>I will always stand beside you, my power joined to yours.<br>For as long as we shall both live." Starrk felt tears pricking his eyes. That… was beautiful. Reaching out almost blindly, he felt it as Lilynette pressed the ring into his hand. He gently placed it on her finger, seeing the beautiful glitter of diamonds and aquamarines. His own ring was plainer, a brushed gold band set with three tiny diamonds. She placed it on his finger and then they kissed. It was deep and passionate, a symbol of the bond between them. Vaguely, he could hear the arrancar cheering and Grimmjow's wolf whistle. He ignored it in favor of the woman in his arms.

They would not be parted, for as long as they both should live.


End file.
